Cherry
by Noizchild Johnson
Summary: On Halloween 1999, Tsuzuki and Hisoka investigated a case involving the murder of a descendant from Eda-Kimoto clan. Tsuzuki met the murder victim's daughter on that same night and comforted her from the shock of her sudden loss. Now in 2009, the case is reopened by the daughter's murder. However, she might be tied to a greater scene for the clan. First book in Ghost Doll series.
1. Prologue

Cherry

_Prologue:_

_Halloween 1999._

Kimoto Daisuke and his sixteen-year-old daughter, Anna, were in for the night. The little trick-or-treaters outside began winding down. Most of the houses had already closed their blinds and turned off their lights. The night sky looked like it would give way to rain at any time now. Father and daughter hadn't planned to do much for the night. She had just finished her homework and Daisuke still had some paperwork to do on his laptop. They had planned to take a bath and go to bed, but then fate took a cruel twist for them.

Anna had finished closing the blinds when the doorbell rang. The girl looked up in Daisuke's office while he was still typing away at his work.

"Papa," she said, "There's someone at the door. What should I do?" Daisuke didn't look up from his laptop screen.

"Just tell them to go away," he replied as he waved her off.

"Okay," Anna replied in a small voice. She walked over to the front door as the bell rang again. The girl opened it a crack and peeked out. A boy with a white and red Kabuki-like mask peeked into the crack. Anna's face twisted into a puzzled one.

"Uh…" she said. "Can I help you?"

"Please Miss!" the boy pleaded as he clutched onto the door. "It's an emergency! We need to use your phone!"

"I'm sorry," Anna replied still rather uncertain of what to make of this situation, "We don't have a phone." This was a lie, of course; that's the best excuse she could come up with at the time. The boy wouldn't leave as she hoped that he would.

"Please!" he pleaded again. "It's matter of life or death, miss! We need to contact help right away!" Anna went quiet for a moment. She looked behind her nervously. Daisuke still stared at his screen working. She doubted that he would really notice if someone walked in the house if she had let him in or not. Once her father was buried in his work, the only thing that would catch his attention was food. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to help this boy out. He did seem to be in trouble and really needed to call for help…

Anna turned back to the boy with her hands trembling by her side. She bit her lip as she gathered together the words that she wanted to say.

"Okay but make it quick," the girl replied with her voice a little bit above a whisper. The boy nodded his head.

"Oh thank you, miss!" he said in one breath. Anna slowly, but reluctantly opened the door. The boy raced inside and grabbed onto her in a bear hug.

"I'm so sorry for this!" he cried out. Suddenly, three men and another boy barged right into the house after him. Anna looked around panicked as the boy laid a gloved hand over her mouth. He clung onto her so tightly that the girl couldn't even try and break away from him. She seemed to have opened the door to a home invasion. The first boy shoved her into the closet and pushed two chairs in front of the door. The girl cried aloud and pounded on the hard wood.

"Hey!" she screamed. "What's going on?! Let me out! Papa! Papa! Help me!"

Daisuke quickly got up at his daughter's cries and ran straight into the living room. The men looked up and saw their true target. Despite their Kabuki-like masks and black clothing, the man recognized them right away. Fire burned in his eyes.

"You!" he hissed. The intruders all smirked at him. The leader took a step forward with a baseball bat in his hands.

"At long last!" he boomed loud enough to disturb the spirit, "Daddy dearest is here!" Daisuke prepared to attack with his kitsune powers. The intruders did likewise with their own powers and weapons. Daisuke threw an ice-fire ball at the leader to start off the fight. The blast broke down into tiny ice shards and stabbed the intruders. One shard ripped the leader's mask, leaving the skin to bleed.

"Bastard!" he snapped. "You think a cheap trick like that will be enough to stop us?!" Daisuke narrowed his eyes at him.

"So, _she_ sent you here?" he asked. "Why can't she just leave us alone?" The head intruder laughed.

"You don't get it, do you?" he asked. "You're in the way and we have to kill you!" He turned to his team.

"Get him before he draws out his full power!" he yelled. Daisuke began to chant another spell when the leader activated another spell to his own kitsune and whacked the father in the head with the baseball bat. Daisuke sank down to the tatami mats with a pain-filled gasp. The other two men piled on him before he had the chance to get up. The leader took off his mask and smirked. He whipped out a knife that he had hidden in his sleeve.

"You're in deep shit now, buddy," he hissed, "You're in deep shit now!" Even when faced with his death, Daisuke refused to give him the satisfaction of fear from their youth together. The leader sneered and stabbed the man in the chest. Anna watched from the closet in horror as her father drew in a breath in pain.

"Papa…" she whimpered. One of the intruders looked at the closet.

"What about his daughter?" he asked. The leader snorted.

"Forget about her!" he barked, "She doesn't matter tonight! We weren't ordered to touch her; we just need to kill her father." The leader intruder stabbed Daisuke again in the chest.

In two hours, the intruders all killed Daisuke by stabbing him fifty-two times in the chest, legs, torso, and neck. They strangled and beat him as an extra measure. The leader took delight in finishing their victim off with the final blow. Anna watched the whole thing from the closet in terror. She couldn't see their faces, but she saw all of the blood on the tatami mats. Daisuke's daughter couldn't understand what was happening. Who were these people and how did her father know them? And why were they killing him? She hugged her knees to her chest and closed her eyes, hoping that the violence would just stop. The long quiet hours that followed only made the waiting much worse for her to stomach.

Around eleven o'clock at night, Tsuzuki Asato and Kurosaki Hisoka came by the Kimoto manor to investigate Daisuke's murder. Ju-Oh-Cho sent them over because of a strong interest in the case due to the violent nature of the crime and Daisuke's dark history. Tsuzuki and Hisoka first investigated the body. The older Shinigami turned to his brash partner.

"It's them, alright," Tsuzuki said as he looked at the Kanji "Eda-Kimoto" and "bear" burned into Daisuke's wrists. Hisoka pondered the whole scene as he looked at the wounds on the body and the blood all over the tatami.

"It doesn't make sense," he said, looking up at his partner, "Why would they turn on their own after so long. They had the opportunity to kill him at any time, but now?" Tsuzuki was about to speak when they heard a sound from inside the closet. The men looked up right away.

"What was that?" Hisoka asked. His partner put up his hand and listened in closer. Thinking they had another victim, Tsuzuki slowly approached the closet. He moved aside the two chairs and opened the door.

Anna looked up at him with her knees to her chest. She trembled as she looked up at him with big, blank eyes. He took pity on the young girl.

"It's okay," he whispered as stuck out his hand to help her out of the closet. "They're gone now. We won't hurt you. We're only here to find out what happened to your dad." The girl stared at him for a long while uncertain. Anna looked so pale with freight from what happened hours before. She tried to look over at the body. Despite Tsuzuki's best attempts to hide it from her, she still saw Daisuke lying on the floor. Blood soaked through his clothes, leaving his white shirt dyed bright red. His open eyes looked glazed over with the last moments before he took his last breath. The chord marks around his neck and his open mouth made it worse. Anna broke down into shaking as she fell to her knees. Heavy tears formed in her eyes.

"Miss?" Tsuzuki asked. A strangled out scream came out of Anna's mouth.

"Papa!" she shouted in her blinding tears. "Papa!" Anna broke down into heavy sobs. Tsuzuki turned to Hisoka for help. He watched in pity as well.

"Just take her away from here," the boy replied, "I'll finish up here." Tsuzuki nodded.

"Come on," he whispered to the girl as he helped her to her feet. She nodded and headed outside to the garden with him. He stayed with her in under the gazebo for the whole time. Tsuzuki held the crying teenage girl to his chest as she wept. She looked up at him with big, despair-filled eyes. Tsuzuki tried to search for something to say to her. He looked out in the thick darkness and noticed that they had a downpour at the moment. He turned his attention back to her.

"Do you miss the rain?" he asked out of the blue. Anna looked at him lost in her sorrow. Tsuzuki nervously laughed. Okay, that didn't work out as he had envisioned it in his head. The Shinigami sat silent as he held onto the victim's daughter. Anna's cheeks turned a rosy pink as she looked into those violet eyes of his. She even felt her own heart beating against her chest. In the middle of the midnight hour, Tsuzuki leaned in and gave her a light kiss on the lips. Anna's heart flipped in her chest as she let her eyes slowly sink closed in the gentle peck. His kiss seemed to promise her something that would bloom into something deeper later on in life.

Noting really became of the kiss after that. The Kimoto case went cold to the Chijou police and Ju-Oh-Cho. Anna moved overseas to America to live with her aunt, Allison Parkman in San Diego, California. That seemed to be it from there, but then, ten years passed…


	2. Back to Life

_Chapter One: Back to Life:_

_May 7th, 2009._

The Shinigami met for what seemed to be a normal case in Ju-Oh-Cho that morning. Konoe-san pulled up the case report on the laptop screen for the projector. An image of a woman appeared with her profile.

"Kimoto Anna," the Chief spoke up. "Age twenty-six and interpreter from San Diego, California. She was found murdered outside of a hotel in Tokyo. Cause of death was strangulation. It's most likely that the killer threw her out the window post-mortem. The police found the marks of the Eda-Kimoto clan burned into her wrists. The people above suspect that she's another victim of the clan's blood sacrifices." Tsuzuki took another bite of his cake as he glanced at the picture. Something about Anna caught his attention.

"_She looks so familiar…_" he thought as he looked on at the picture.

"Tsuzuki," the Chief went on. "You and Hisoka may have met Kimoto-san ten years ago during the first Eda-Kimoto case." Both boys' eyes grew big in shock. Tsuzuki put all of the pieces together in his mind. This woman was the girl he stayed with that same Halloween night. The Shinigami remembered the kiss that he gave her. He couldn't believe Anna had been killed. Tsuzuki's mood shifted to a serious one.

"And… what would you like us to investigate?" he asked.

"Stop the Eda-Kimoto clan from killing!" the Chief ordered. "I am told from above that we can't have any more victims!"

"Yes sir!" Tsuzuki and Hisoka said together before bowing.

Anna's body had been taken to a funeral home for crematory preparations. Tsuzuki went alone to pay his last respects. The man needed to convince his partner that he needed to do this first.

"I feel that I have to do this," he told Hisoka. His partner narrowed his eyes at him.

"I don't really think that's a good idea," Hisoka warned him as they headed out to the city. Tsuzuki gave him a puzzled look.

"Why is that?" the man asked. Hisoka shook his head.

"I can't quite explain it," the boy began, "I just don't think it's a good idea at this time."

"I promise I'll be careful," Tsuzuki insisted, "It won't even take too long. Please?" The older Shinigami gave him a sweet little look. Hisoka sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Fine, but you have to make it back to Ju-Oh-Cho before sundown," he said. Tsuzuki gave him a quick bow.

"Thank you, Hisoka!" he said. His partner frowned and groaned to himself.

"Whatever," he mumbled.

Tsuzuki tracked down the funeral house through the paper. It only took him a minute to get there. The Shinigami made it inside without being noticed. He made it to the casket and found a man stood over Anna's dead body. Curious, the Shinigami walked over to him and the casket. The man looked up and saw him when he heard footsteps enter the room. He looked to be in his mid-seventies dressed in all black. His reddish black hair had just been neatly cut. Tsuzuki froze up for a moment. The man smiled at him kindly.

"Ah," he said aloud. "Come here to pay your respects?" Tsuzuki nodded at him.

"Yeah," he replied. The man stepped aside some. Tsuzuki walked over to the open casket and looked in. Except for the red ligature mark around her neck and paleness to her skin, Anna looked more asleep than dead, peacefully dreaming in fact. A young beautiful woman dead at twenty-six; such a shame. Tsuzuki's heart ached in pity for her.

"Twenty-six years old," the other man spoke up. "It's so horrible." The Shinigami looked up at him. The other man focused his attention on Tsuzuki.

"Oh sorry! Just talking to myself out loud," he replied quickly as he waved his hands. "I'm Iwao Kato, by the way. I knew Anna and her father personally."

"Tsuzuki Asato," the Shinigami said back, "I'm a friend of the deceased too." Both men shook hands. Tsuzuki had a strange feeling about that guy from the touch, but he kept it to himself. They let go and turned back to the body. The old man smirked to himself as he had already found the second element to put his plan into motion.

"Wonder what happened to her?" Kato asked Tsuzuki. The Shinigami looked up at him again.

"Wasn't she murdered by her family?" he asked.

"So you're familiar with the Eda-Kimoto stories?" the other man asked him. "You heard about the mark burned onto her wrists?"

"Yeah!" Tsuzuki replied, "I don't understand."

"Understand what?" Kato asked. Tsuzuki shook his head.

"Why would her own family kill her after all these years?" Tsuzuki asked. "I mean, they had the chance that night. Why would she even come back to Japan with the chance of them coming back to kill?" Kato gave him a little smile as he began to act on his plot.

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" he suggested. Tsuzuki looked at him confused.

"How?" he asked. Kato grinned like the devil himself. The man reached into his heavy black coat and drew out a black jewel-like stone. Tsuzuki's eyes grew big in shock.

"A Hell Stone?" he asked almost aloud.

"Shhh!" Kato whispered to him, "Not so loud." Red flags went off in Tsuzuki's mind. The Hell Stone wasn't stable at all. This gem went into the mouth of the corpse and anchored the soul back to the body. However, it could only stay in a body for one minute or else someone else had to die in their place. Plus, if the Hell Stone dissolved, the body would become white ash—soul and all. Tsuzuki looked on uncertain.

"But that only lasts for a minute without killing anybody!" he whispered back.

"So?" Kato suggested. "That's all you would need. You can't let this key information slip away." Tsuzuki thought about that for a moment. The Hell Stone carried many risks, but he needed anything to stop the Eda-Kimoto clan from killing any more victims. If he had only one minute to talk to the victim, then so be it.

"Okay," Tsuzuki said at last. "I'll bring her back." Kato nodded at him gracefully. _And now the plan really begins._

"Wise decision," he replied. The man handed him the stone. Tsuzuki took it and turned back to Anna's dead body.

_I'm so sorry about this, Kimoto-san!_, he thought. The Shinigami slipped the Hell Stone into the dead woman's mouth. The powerful gem connected inside of her heart with such a shock, it nearly shut casket lid. Tsuzuki opened it back up to see her eyes wide open and staring at him. Anna sat up and looked around.

"Where am I?" she asked. "What happened to me?" Tsuzuki stepped forward.

"You've been murdered," he explained to her. "Strangled and dumped out a window to be exact." Anna took it all in piece by piece.

"By who?" she asked. "Why would they do such a thing?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out…" Tsuzuki replied. Anna slowly climbed out of the casket. The Shinigami became rather distracted. Ten years had been a long time and Anna had grown into quite an attractive young woman. Such a waste for her to die so soon…

"What if… you didn't have to be dead?" he asked her. Anna looked at him slightly puzzled.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Tsuzuki got lost in her green-tinted brown eyes. Right then, time ran out. In place of Anna being alive, the greedy old funeral director croaked in his office of cardiac arrest while counting all of the money and other riches that he had stolen off the deceased that passed through the funeral home over the years. However, Tsuzuki and Anna didn't think about that at all. They had other things to worry about at the moment. The pair heard footsteps coming their way. They looked up right away.

"The undertaker!" Anna whispered in surprise. "What do we do?" Tsuzuki quickly covered her mouth.

"Shhh! Listen closely to me," he whispered to her. "Hide in the casket for now. I know the mortician there. I'll get him blind drunk. Once he's passed out, I'll get you out right away, understand?" Anna nodded at him quickly.

"Okay, quick! Get in!" Tsuzuki instructed her. The woman climbed back into the casket. The Shinigami closed the lid and vanished. The undertaker's assistant came and took the coffin away. Tsuzuki watched them from the back corner invisibly. Suddenly, he felt that this plan wasn't a good idea anymore. Too late to worry about that now; he could only go with the current plan and hope for the best.


	3. Return to Kimoto Manor

_Chapter Two: Return to Kimoto Manor:_

Tsuzuki trailed the assistant funeral director to the crematorium grounds. Right then as he thought, a hitch arose. The usual cremator wasn't at his post. Instead, a new guy in his twenties prepared the cremation. Tsuzuki watched on with a lump in his throat.

_Oh shit!_, he thought. The man hadn't counted on this! The Shinigami drew in a deep breath and walked over to the coffin and the new guy.

"Hey there," Tsuzuki said to the other guy. The young cremator paused and looked up at him. A puzzled look came onto his face.

"Sir," the new guy spoke up. "What exactly are you doing here?" He looked about nineteen years old and fresh out of college. The Shinigami looked around for a moment.

"Where's Narusawa-san?" he asked. The new guy looked at him surprised by that question.

"Haven't you heard?" he asked.

"Heard what?" the Shinigami asked.

"Narusawa-san died five days ago in Osaka. I took his place," the new guy answered. A sweat drop formed on the Shinigami's head.

"Oh yeah…" Tsuzuki replied. He just now remembered that little fact. The ministry heard about that as well. Okay, the plan just took a hard hit there. Seeing Anna again messed up his mind so much that he missed some important details. Narusawa-san's death slipped his mind when he looked into the woman's greenish-brown eyes. Tsuzuki pulled out a bottle of sake he managed to nix from Narusawa-san's old stash in the cleaning closet.

"Drink?" he offered the new guy. The younger man shook his head.

"Nah," he replied. "I'm straight edge." Tsuzuki looked at him puzzled.

"Straight edge?" he asked.

"Yeah," the cremator replied. "No drinking, drugs, or smoking!"

"I see…" the Shinigami replied. The cremator went back to his work. Tsuzuki looked on, biting his lower lip. He had to get Anna out of that casket or she would burn to death. The Shinigami looked around again for a little help. Tsuzuki spotted the guy's cremation license in his brown fake leather wallet sitting on the table with the crematory supplies. He quietly took it from his wallet and slipped it into his pocket.

Plan B took effect right… now!

"So you're new, right?" the Shinigami asked him aloud.

"Yeah," his "friend" replied.

"Where's your license?" Tsuzuki asked. The younger gentleman turned around, smiling.

"I'll show you," he replied. The man walked over to his wallet. Tsuzuki silently watched on. The new cremator opened his wallet and looked inside.

"Oh crap!" he mumbled as panic met his face. Tsuzuki gave him a curious look.

"What's the matter?" he asked. His "friend" looked up at him pale as a ghost.

"It's gone!" he yelped. "My license is gone!" The Shinigami looked on with fake concern.

"Did you lose it somewhere?" he asked.

"No, I had it in my wallet like I normally do," the cremator replied. He sank down to the ground in a squat. He buried his face in his hands.

"Oh this is bad! I could get arrested for cremating without a license!" he moaned.

"Okay, calm down," Tsuzuki spoke up. "Maybe you left it at home or something." The younger man looked up, nodding with a desperate smile.

"Yeah," he said, "I was in a hurry this morning. I must have left it at home!" The cremator rose to his face and turned to the Shinigami.

"I'll be right back," he said. "My apartment is just a few blocks from this funeral home!" Then, the new guy ran all the way home to go fine his "missing" license.

"Right…" Tsuzuki replied, giving a small wave. _Now to finish up here_, he thought.

Once he was sure the young man had gone, Tsuzuki opened the casket. Anna smiled at him as she lain waiting inside. The Shinigami smiled at her in relief.

"You okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," she said with a nod.

"Let's go!" Tsuzuki whispered. The woman nodded again. The Shinigami helped her out of the casket and shut it back. They hurried out of the crematory yard invisibly.

"What about your friend?" Anna asked in his arms.

"He'll be fine," the Shinigami replied. "I put his license back on the table before I got you."

"Ah," Anna replied. He took her all the way back to the old Kimoto manor within two hours time. The woman looked around in her bewilderment as they stood just two feet from the abandoned house.

"I don't get it," she said, "Why are we here?" Tsuzuki shrugged.

"Don't really know," he replied. "Just thought it would be a good place to hide you for now." Anna looked at the old decaying building. Despite the dirt and weathering of the exterior, the house look just the same as it did in her memories. The place hadn't been touched since that dreadful night…

"We can go somewhere else if you want," Tsuzuki suggested. Anna looked up with big eyes at him.

"No!" she said as waved her hand back and forth. "This will do just fine. I have to face my past to find the truth anyway!"

"Alright," Tsuzuki replied, sounding rather uncertain about the whole idea.

They broke into the empty house and went inside. He took her into the old living room. Still looked the same since 1999, only older and emptier except for some pieces of chipped furniture left over by the police. Small traces of Daisuke's blood still stained the tatami mats. Tsuzuki and Anna tried to look away as they sat at the chipped black and gold coffee table facing each other. The Shinigami took a long while to get a good look at the girl he tried to comfortable ten years ago.

Had it really been that long? Anna used to have her straight auburn hair in a long ponytail when he first met her. Now, she had it out in a loose and neatly trimmed hime cut to her small, creamy-toned shoulders. The same old choppy bangs still hid her forehead. He could never escape from those greenish-brown eyes of hers—not then, not now. Anna's face still reminded Tsuzuki of a little traditional baby doll in a museum. Her cheeks managed to stay plump and rosy after so long. Her Japanese and American attributes blended together to form a natural charm to her whole being.

_Damn, who knew ten years in America could do all of that to a person?_, he thought as his eyes stayed glued to her chest. Even those grew into a rather attractive shape of the passing years.

"Yes, they are real and 40 C," Anna announced aloud. The Shinigami about jumped when she said that.

"Why are you telling me that?!" he yelped. Anna laughed at him.

"You were staring at my breasts, weren't you?" she challenged. Tsuzuki panicked as he brain dug for an answer.

"Yeah… I mean, no… I mean…" he tried to reason, "Why would you say something like that?!" Anna laughed again.

"I only tell that to guys I like!" she replied playfully with devilish intent. The Shinigami blinked at her rather confused.

"You… like me?" he asked her.

"Maybe," Anna replied before giggling again. Tsuzuki relaxed, still trying to follow the sudden turn the atmosphere took.

_She seems to like messing with me!_, he thought. Somehow, her goofy nature reminded him of something that he just had to now. Tsuzuki became serious for a moment.

"Hey Anna," the Shinigami spoke up. The woman turned her attention back to him.

"Yes?" she asked.

"What are you doing back in Japan after so long?" he asked. Anna's moon shifted to a serious as well.

"I wanted to find out why my father was murdered," she replied. Tsuzuki pretended to look surprised.

"Wasn't he killed during the home invasion?" he asked.

"I thought so too," Anna replied, "But then two months ago, Kato-san came to visit me in California. He told me that my papa was murdered because of a hit placed on him ten years ago. I didn't believe him at first; or rather I didn't want to believe him. Then Kato-san put his hand on mine and shut his eyes. He began chanting something, but his voice was so soft that I could barely make out what he saying. Suddenly, I felt a little tingle all over my body as he spoke. Somehow, I saw bits and pieces of everything in a haze."

"How do you mean?" the Shinigami asked her, bent on learning more about this encounter. Anna shook her head.

"I can't really explain it," she replied. "Kato-san just touched me on the hand and told me he took away the blindness in my heart. I felt as if I couldn't ignore the gravity of the situation any longer." Tsuzuki watched on in suspicion. Something about this Kato-san guy seemed pretty off. He tells Anna that Daisuke's murder was targeted, took away the "blindness" in her heart as he claimed, then she comes to Japan, gets murdered, and Kato hands Tsuzuki the Hell stone to bring her back. It all smelled like a scheme.

"So you came back to Japan to find out the truth and got killed instead?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Yeah," Anna replied, "How am I alive now?" Tsuzuki hesitated at first. He knew this would happen. Something told him that using the Hell Stone and keeping her alive was a bad idea; but yet, something about her made it worth getting deeper and deeper into this mess. So, deeper and deeper Tsuzuki went.

"I put a Hell Stone inside of you," he admitted quickly. Anna didn't understand him there at all.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "What is a Hell Stone?" Tsuzuki shook his head.

"I'll tell you later," he replied."Do you have any idea who would have wanted you dead?" Anna shook her head as she frowned.

"No," she replied. "I didn't see my attacker. I was getting ready for bed that night when someone snuck up behind me, grabbed me, and muzzled me. The last thing I remember is feeling the wires around my neck being pulled tighter and tighter until I died." A little disappointment crept into Tsuzuki's eyes.

_Figures!_, he thought. _She doesn't know anything at all!_ He knew he should pull the stone out and be done with it there. However, something inside held him back. The Shinigami just couldn't figure out what or why. It wouldn't hurt to let her live long enough to find out the truth, would it? Surely the boss wouldn't mind, would he?

Tsuzuki stayed up talking until it got late. He happened to look at his watch and panic.

"Oh no!" he cried.

"What is it?" Anna asked.

"I forgot about that I was supposed to meet up with my partner hours ago!" he explained. "He's going to be so mad at me for standing me up!" He rose to his feet. Before leaving, he glanced over his shoulder her.

"Are you sure you're be okay by yourself tonight?" he asked. Anna gave him a brave smile as she nodded.

"Yep!" she said. "I don't think whoever killed me knows I'm alive again yet."

"That is possible," he said, "But I'll be back in the morning to check on you, okay?"

"Alright," Anna replied, "Good night."

"Night," Tsuzuki said. Despite hurrying out the door, the Shinigami left feeling warm seeing Anna alive once more. He would probably get in trouble for it later, but he didn't really think about that at the time. Anna felt that same warmth from seeing him after so long. She began to remember the moments he stayed with her in the garden in the rain-filled darkness. That night brought her tragedy and happiness all at once. Speaking of which…

Anna stood up from the coffee table and walked down the darkened hall. She used her memory to find where Daisuke's old office used to be.

_Last door to the left_, Anna thought to herself. She found it right away. The door stared the woman down like a hungry cat to a mouse. Anna drew in a deep breath and slide the door open wide.

Just like everything else in the manor, Daisuke's office was the same, only older. Anna felt so cold being here. She wanted to turn back now, but if she did that, Anna wouldn't know what happened to her father ever. At the moment, she needed to sleep. The woman walked over to Daisuke's old leftover futon, lied down on it, curled up, and went to sleep.


	4. Whoops

_Chapter Three: Whoops:_

_March 11th, 1983._

Kato found himself woken up in the middle of the night by someone pounding at his front door. The older man walked down the hall, mumbling in aggravation.

"Hold your damn horses!" Kato yelled. "I'm coming! I'm coming!" He made it to the front door and slid it open. An eighteen year old boy stood in the rain looking inside. He looked like a high school senior. His blackish brown spiky hair had been neatly cut to his collar. The boy still had on his school uniform. In his arms he held a spelling little ten-day-old baby. This boy held an umbrella over the both of them. Kato looked at him with bags under his eyes.

"What do you want?" he mumbled half-asleep.

"Please sir!" his guest pleaded, "My daughter and I need a place to stay for the night! Can you put us up?" Kato stared on half out of it. His eyes turned to the baby. She looked so little and cute with her pink cheeks. The baby slept peacefully wrapped up in her little yellow and white blanket. Just seeing her stirred something in Kato's frozen heart. The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out a fist-full of yen.

"Here," he said, "I've got the money!" Kato looked on in silence as he kept his eyes on the baby.

_May 8th, 2009._

Anna awoke the next morning to two _big_ surprises. The first one stared her right in the face. The woman found her red backpack sitting before her. A note had been taped to it. Anna took it and read it. "You left this!" was all it said. She looked at the note front and back. No name at all. Anna looked at her backpack again. Something seemed off here. How did her backpack get all the way out here? Who brought it here and why? Anna began to think it was possibly a trap. She definitely decided to check.

A sound outside Daisuke's office distracted her thoughts. She heard footsteps, not to be mistaken. Anna crept over to the door and peeked out crack she opened. A man stood at the foot of the hall talking to a woman. Judging by his fancy suit and clipboard, he was a real estate agent.

_Kimoto Manor is being sold?_, she thought. Oh, this just took many steps backwards. Anna noticed the realtor and the woman walking closer.

_Oh crap!_, she thought. The woman knew that she had to make herself scarce or she would get caught. She used her memory of Daisuke's office to hide.

_Come on,_ Anna thought, _Think genius, you practically spend years studying papa's office! Try to remember everything!_ The answer came to her right after that train of thought.

_Of course_, she thought. Anna walked across the room to the wall. She felt along the walls for the hidden sliding door. This was where she hid to spy on Daisuke when she was a kid. The woman found, slid open the "secret closet" as she called it, and slipped inside with her backpack in hand.

Outside in the hall, the realtor showed a young woman and her little daughter around the Manor. For a whole decade, Eastern Noel had been trying sale this manor. Due to the stigma attached to it however, there had been no takers. Everyone believed Daisuke's death cursed the Manor with the Eda-Kimoto legacy. The realtor became obsessed with selling the property. He had to jump through many hoops to do it. His cleaner girlfriend would really want sex and a ring after this last attempt. He called her in the wee hours just to scrub out the leftover blood in the tatami mats one more time. She _really_ wasn't happy about that.

"You can't even get anyone to come out and look at the property!" she nagged him. Her boyfriend refused to give up. This woman and her daughter were his last chance. The realtor took the girls to Daisuke's office. He slid open the door.

"And here," he said, "Is something like an office area." The mother and daughter looked around. Their realtor waited as he fought to keep up the cheerful look on his face.

"Pretty nice, huh?" he asked. Anna waited as the man went on describing Daisuke's old office. She couldn't see the people.

_Don't buy the house! Don't buy the house! Don't buy the house!_, the woman thought over and over again. The realtor walked over to Anna's wall.

"Oh, check out these walls!" he boomed. "They don't make them like this anymore!" Anna began to panic.

_Don't open the door! Don't open the door!_, she pleaded in her mind. Instead, the realtor knocked the door. A low hollow sounded echoed in the room. The realtor smiled at his potential clients impressed.

"Shall we go on?" he asked. Anna breathed out as the people left the room. The Kimoto Manor was _really_ for sell. Anna lowered her head in stress. She hadn't expected this at all.

The realtor took mother and daughter back to the front door. He smiled as the nervous cracks in his cheerful mask began to show.

"So," he said. "What do you think? Is the house to your liking?" The little girl's eyes lit up.

"Yeah!" she cheered. The realtor relaxed behind his upbeat exterior. There was one yes there, now for the young mother. She frowned at him sternly. The realtor fought to keep his nerves intact.

"What's wrong?" he asked. The mother looked at him sharply.

"Pretty good," she said, "But… something keeps bugging me about this house." The realtor's confident poker face began chipping away.

"What is it?" he asked. The young mother narrowed her dark brown eyes at the realtor behind her silver-framed glasses.

"I know Japan's economy is bad right now," she pointed out, "But it's almost impossible for a house as big as this to be sold at such a low price like it is. Okay, what's the deal? Leaky pipes? Hidden damages? Terminates?" The realtor began to sweat.

_Oh no!_, he thought, _I'm going to lose this deal!_ The mother an icy look flashed in her eyes.

"Come on," she insisted, "Tell me the truth. If I stuck with a money pit, I will sue the shit out of you and your company!"

"Mom, calm down!" her daughter yelled as she tugged on her blue jeans. The woman calmed down and went silent. The realtor swallowed hard and dropped his shoulders. No way out now; it was time to tell the truth.

"Okay," he confessed, "Ten years ago, the previous owner was murdered on Halloween night. Rumor has it that his own family, the Eda-Kimoto clan, killed him as a blood sacrifice. Some believe that this house is cursed because of that." The mother raised an eyebrow at him.

"That all?" she asked.

"Yes!" the realtor yelped. Silence passed before the young mother's eyes lit up brightly.

"That is so cool!" she cried. "I'll take it!" The realtor looked at her surprised and puzzled.

"R-Really?" he asked with big eyes. The woman grabbed him by the hands.

"Of course!" she shouted. "I love the paranormal! This house will be perfect!" The realtor stared at her at first, but then he gave her a real smile.

"Done!" the realtor said. "The house is yours!" They bowed after the woman let go of him. The realtor felt like flying. He finally managed to sell Kimoto manor after all. Good news for him, but bad news for Anna.

Anna wasn't the one with problems. Tsuzuki realized that he was screwed. He ended up chewed out by Konoe for yesterday's turn of events. Not only did he bring Anna back from the dead, but he used a Hell Stone to do it.

"Ju-Oh-Cho's duty is to bring the souls to Meifu and make sure they stay dead!" Konoe yelled. "Kimoto-san is supposed to be here, not back in Chijou! What were you thinking?!" Tsuzuki lowered his head.

"I was talked into it," Tsuzuki said with a nervous chuckle. The rage in Konoe's eyes began to flare.

"And how did you manage that one?" he asked. Tsuzuki bit his lower lip.

"It's kind of a difficult story…" he mumbled. Hisoka frowned and rolled his eyes.

_Idiot_, he thought, _I should've come with you._ The boy knew something like this would happen. Konoe frowned at them both.

"The worst part is you used a Hell Stone!" he barked. "How the hell did you come across one of those?!"

"Well there was a man there who claimed that he was a friend to the friend," Tsuzuki did his best to explain, "He offered it to me as a way to get her to help out with the case." Konoe and Hisoka turned their attention to him. The chief narrowed his eyes at the oldest Shinigami before him.

"Does this man know _anything_ about you or this investigation?" Konoe asked in a sharp tone. Tsuzuki shook his head as he shrugged.

"He didn't say, but I figured now that she's alive again," he said in a pinch, "We could use her to help us out in some way even if she doesn't know who killed her." Konoe raised an eyebrow at him.

"And how do you plan to do that?" he asked. Tsuzuki froze as he ran out of options to save himself serve discipline. Konoe frowned at him.

"I will go to Enma-Daioh to deal with you and her later," he warned. Now, Tsuzuki was stuck guarding her as punishment for the time being. Was it really worth all of that?

_Damn it!_, Tsuzuki thought as he ate his apple pie. _Why did this case have to get so hard?_ This was all Kato's fault! No, this was all Kato _and_ Tsuzuki's own fault. The Shinigami got distracted by her greenish-brown eyes that he hadn't seen in so long.

Suddenly, Tsuzuki noticed someone sitting next to him in the café. He slowly looked up and saw none other than Kato sitting next to him. He seemed to be smirking to himself about something he found rather amusing. Tsuzuki glared at him crossly.

_That bastard!_, he thought. _He put me in this mess! Damn him!_

"Good afternoon!" the barista greeted him, "How may I help you?"

"Yes," Kato said, "I would like an order of freshly made green tea rare cheesecake to go, please, darling." The barista's cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

"O-Of course, sir!" she stammered out. The young barista got to work right away and gave the cooks the order. Kato smiled to himself.

_Such an easy cute doll!_, he thought. The man turned to his left and saw Tsuzuki glaring at him still. Iwao smiled at him.

"Well hello Tsuzuki-san!" he greeted the Shinigami, "So nice to see you again!" Tsuzuki became serious and bitter.

"You bastard!" his hissed under his breath, "You nearly got me fired!" Kato smiled as he completely turned around to his "friend."

"What's a little conflict between bringing back someone dear to you?" he asked. "Beauty and love come with a little pain. You'll forget that your boss was even angry with you about Anna-chan!"

"Little conflict?!" Tsuzuki yelled with a red face, "Who the hell are you and why do you care so much about Kimoto-san?" Kato smiled at him as he put up his hand to calm down the Shinigami.

"Twenty-six years ago," he said, "An eighteen year old boy came to my door late one rainy night. He had a ten day old baby in his arms. This boy asked me if I would put him and his daughter up for the night. He even tried to pay me for lodging—probably about two months worth of his paychecks.

"I looked at that little baby after he asked this of me. I couldn't really explain it myself at the time, but I felt great pity for her. So, I told the baby's father to keep his money and he could stay as long as he liked." Tsuzuki looked at him oddly.

"I don't get it," he said. "Why are you telling me this?" Kato had a dreamy look in his eyes as he shrugged at him.

"That boy was the father of the woman that you resurrected," he answered. Tsuzuki's eyes grew big in surprise. Kato's lips curved into a catlike at him.

"Surprised?" he asked. "It is the truth, after all." The Shinigami sat there with all words lost to him. The barista returned with the older man's cheesecake. Kato gave her a charming, flirtatious smile.

"Thanks, darling!" he said. The man took his boxed-up cake and gave her a huge amount of money.

"This is for me and my friend here," he said, pointing at Tsuzuki. Both barista and Shinigami looked up at him with big, surprised eyes.

"S-Sure!" the barista exclaimed with flushed cheeks. She took the money and got out the change. The young barista began to hand him the change, but Kato held up his hand.

"Keep the change," he said. The man and barista bowed. As Kato gracefully left, Tsuzuki watched his back. More red flags shot up about that guy. He would now have to keep a good watch on Kato and protect Anna from the Eda-Kimoto clan.

_Damn it, the work and trouble just keep piling up!_, he cursed himself. Yet, Anna seemed to make it worth it.


	5. Digging for the Truth

_Chapter Four: Digging for the Truth:_

_August 1st, 2002._

Escape; Anna's computer became just that. The college freshman would boot it up and do some research or homework whenever she felt sad or stressed. Sure, she would feel better later, but to what cost?

Anna isolated herself further in her "glass box," as her friends called it, in the sky. She wouldn't eat or sleep for days as she stared at the screen looking at different articles on various subjects. Her friends worried about her because of it. They tried to drag her out with them whenever they could. They even had to "kidnap" her to celebrate her twenty-first birthday on the beach town two years later.

Despite all attempts to breathe life into her, the college freshman could not be reached. Anna didn't have any interest in anything tied to a social atmosphere; she just wanted to escape. Escape from the pain of the three years ago; escape from that night.

_May 8th, 2009._

Anna unzipped her backpack the same time the mother and daughter bought the house. _Time to check if anything had been stolen or bugged_, the woman thought. She went over the checklist in her head. If Anna was correct, everything should be here.

_Right_, Anna thought. She overturned her backpack and dumped the contents on her futon. Her iPod was still there, earphones and all. Anna turned on her iPod and scrolled through the music. Everything was there and nothing she didn't download present so far. Her snacks were all in the bags. The clean underwear still looked folded and untouched. Her pencils and pens were still there. She still had the newspaper she bought in California. The same went for her Tylenol, socks, and water bottle. Her hygiene things unused and present like the day she packed them in. The basics all checked out as clear. Anna breathed out and sat back.

_Good!_, she thought. The Japanese-American took in a deep breath and picked up work again.

First item on the list: Journal. All pages were still there and clean. The only writing present was hers. That's one item down and now for the biggie. She pulled out her red Studio 17 Dell laptop and flash drive. If someone wanted to kill her, it would be over this. The woman took some time to prepare herself. Anna looked around for an outlet for her laptop and found one neat the door.

_Perfect!_, the woman thought. She plugged up the laptop and got right to work. Anna turned on her laptop. The welcome screen popped up looking untouched. Anna didn't let down her guard though.

Anna logged in using her fingerprints in the fingerprint scanner. She waited for her account to load. Windows came up with no problems. Her settings looked the same as before she was killed. Anna still looked around the whole laptop for a few minutes. The laptop passed the test. One more item left to check out.

Anna plugged in her black and red flash drive. She waited for the file to come up. Anna examined contents once it loaded. She spotted a file labeled "To Kimoto-san."

_What the hell is this?_, she thought. Anna clicked on the icon. A word document popped up and she read it to herself.

Dear Kimoto-san:

If you are reading this, you have been brought back from the dead. I know you have many questions about your situation. I can't give them to you, but I can give you a start. You have something in your soul called a Hell Stone. I am not to explain any more than that to you at the time being. Good luck with the search.

There was no name to it. Anna stared on blankly at the letter. Not much of a clue but, better than nothing. She clicked on Foxfire on her desktop and Google Japan came up. She typed in "Hell Stone." A list of urban legend pages came up as a result. After narrowing down the search and looking through the links, she found the best page and clicked on the link.

"The Hell Stone brings the dead back to life temporary," the woman read to herself. "The stone is place in the deceased's mouth and anchors the soul to the body. The deceased will come back to life; however they cannot stay not for long. If the dead is alive longer than one minute, someone else has to die in their place." The color drained from Anna's face at those words.

_Somebody died because of me?_, she thought. The poor woman's hand trembled on the mouse, yet she forced herself to keep reading.

"The Hell Stone is highly unstable," Anna read on. "Over time, it will break down in the body. Once the stone breaks down, the host body—soul and all- will break down into white ash. With that being said, the host body is still vulnerable to illness, injury, and death. The stone does not grant the host body any powers what so ever. Once the stone is removed, the person will die again, but this time they will stay dead. The Hell Stone will break down into dust once it is removed. No other stones can be used to bring them back." Anna sat back in her chair, panting with her hand clutched her black tank top.

_I could die again at any moment?_, she thought. In would take several hours for Anna to come to terms with her situation. Until then, she buried herself in her research on the Hell Stone and any clues to her father's past. Just like she did during her college days, every page of information locked Anna higher in her invisible glass box of disassociation and isolation.


	6. Crowded House

_Chapter Five: Crowded House:_

_August 20th, 2001._

The classes began at San Diego University that boiling morning. Anna entered her Japanese literature class with her eyes down to her books at her chest. She didn't really choose any of her classes; the school chose them. The new freshman looked around the classroom. Not many students were here at the moment. She made it here early as she judged. Anna picked a desk on the front row and sat down. The glass box went up around her and she expected to be alone.

The freshman felt someone tap her on the shoulder. Anna slowly turned around to a cute blonde-haired girl smiling at her. She looked like a teenage model with her blue eyes, freckled cheeks, and perfectly white teeth. The girl waved at Anna.

"Hi!" she chirped. The Japanese-American girl looked at her blankly for a moment. The blonde grinned at her as she held out her hand.

"I'm Rebecca Campbell!" she introduced herself, "But you can call me Becky!" Anna looked at her with big, nervous eyes. Becky leaned in so that their faces were just inches from each other.

"You doing anything after this class?" she asked. Anna blinked as she tried to comprehend what was unfolding in front of her.

"No, why?" she asked. Becky clapped her hand together with success.

"Great!" she chirped. "There is a great club I want to introduce you to!" Anna struggled for the appropriate reaction to the invitation.

"Okay…" she said. Becky reached out to pat her on the shoulder. Anna backed up startled. Her acquaintance grinned like a little kitty as she twirled her short blonde hair with her fingers.

"Come on!" she pushed." It'll be fun!" Anna still didn't know how to answer as she dug deeper in her mind to say something. Becky was just pushing the girl here. Anna lowered her shoulders in surrender.

"Okay," she mumbled reluctantly, "I'll go check it out." Her acquaintance's flashed a smile of victory.

"Sweet!" she said, "You won't regret it!" Anna forced herself to smile as if she was sitting on a sharpened spike.

_May 8th, 2009._

Anna entered enter twentieth search into the Hell Stone when she heard the door slid open. She looked up to see a little girl looking at her. Both exchanged puzzled looks at each other.

"Hello?" Anna asked her in a matching tone.

"Hi," the little girl said back, likewise. The woman studied the girl closely. Her black hair was out with two long skinny ponytails on the sides with little pink bows holding them in place. Her face put Hello Kitty to shame in the cute department. Her rosy cheeks looked so full and squishy. Anna saw a younger innocent version of herself in the girl's big sweet caramel brown eyes. The school uniform of a mini-sailor girl completed her look. The little dark blue skirt seemed so fluffy and inviting. Her matching blouse and big white bow on her chest opened the door to innocence. Anna's glass box began to crack. The little girl tilted her head at Anna.

"Are you a ghost?" she asked. A sweat drop formed on Anna's head.

_A ghost?!_, she thought, _Really now?!_ However, Anna ended up going along with the façade.

"Uh… yeah…" she said as she waved her hands around at the child, "I am a ghost!" Pretty cheesy, but she couldn't chase her away. The kid probably wouldn't leave, not easily anyway.

"What is your name?" Anna asked in an attempt to kill the awkward moment about to arise. The little girl smiled at her.

"I'm Tanaka Yoko!" she said. "What's your name?" Anna smiled at her.

"Anna," she replied. "Kimoto Anna." A pause came over them as Yoko's eyes lit up brightly.

"Ooo!" she said. "Are you related to the man that died here?" Anna paused with her lips trembling. She suddenly wished she hadn't said her surname. The Kimoto name had some negative stigma attached to it. Anna looked down at her feet.

"Yes," she mumbled. "He was my father." Yoko looked intrigued.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yes," Anna answered with fire in her voice, "But he was a good man! He wasn't a murderer or anything!" She forced herself to calm down at the last bit.

_Why are you getting angry?_, she thought, _The kid's not accusing papa of anything. She just asked a simple question. Calm down!_

"So, what are you doing here, Yoko-chan?" Anna asked when she felt better. The little girl smiled at her.

"I live here with my mom now!" she chirped. Anna's face dropped instantly.

"What?" she asked.

"That's right!" Yoko said, grinning. Anna dropped her head in hands. This child's mother had bought Kimoto Manor after all. It would about get worse miles away.

Becky Campbell and some of Anna's college friends had landed at Tokyo Airport. She looked around through her dark iris blue shades and turned to her friends.

"Okay guys," she said sternly. "We are here to find the truth. We will not leave the country until we find out what really happened to our dear Anna! You got me?"

"Right!" the rest of the California friends agreed. Becky got out her English version of her guidebook around Tokyo.

"So," she said. "Shall we go to the police first or get settled?"

"Settled!" the others yelled in tired voices.

"Okay," their leader said, trying to please them, "We'll eat and then go to the hotel." Becky looked in her guide for a good restaurant for dinner.

"Hey, there's a McDonald's nearby here!" she said. A brunette in jeans a Pink Floyd's _Dark Side of the Moon_ t-shirt peered at the leader.

"How nearby?" she asked. Becky read on. The others waited. Their leader looked up smiling.

"About eight miles," she answered. The group pondered that option.

"Alright," the brunette spoke up, "Fine then." Becky clapped her hands together.

"Good!" she said. "Let's go to MacDonald's!" The crew headed out of the airport once they got their luggage.

Meanwhile at Kimoto Manor, Anna still had troubling adjusting. First, she learned that the stone keeping her soul anchored could kill her at any moment and now, her house had been sold- all in the span of one day. Anna lied on her futon staring at the ceiling.

A suicide, huh? That would never fly with Becky and them. Knowing her, she would gather up the old photo club, fly to Japan, and start digging for the truth. When it came to Anna's well-being, Becky wouldn't rest until Anna was cared for. The American-Japanese woman smiled a little bit to herself.

_Oh Becky_, she thought, _You would break your back just for me!_ Then, she held her door slid open. Anna sat up and looked and saw Tsuzuki stood in the doorway.

"Hey," he said with a wave. The woman looked on at him.

"Tsuzuki… -san," she said. "What are you doing here?" The Shinigami stepped into Daisuke's office.

"I came to check on you," he answered. Anna raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why is that?" she asked slightly sharp. Tsuzuki stepped forward looking rather sheepish.

"I was assigned to," he told her with a sweat drop on his head before adding a nervous chuckle to that sentence.

"Because of the Hell Stone?" she asked sternly.

"Yeah," he said, nodding. Anna stood up as well and walked over to him. Tsuzuki kept his eyes on her. He couldn't seem to piece this woman together in his mind. He barely knew her now. Part of him wanted to learn more about her. Maybe he could after all of this mess is over, if there was still time…

"Tsuzuki-san," Anna spoke up in a bold voice. "I know about the Hell Stone." He silently worried, but did not speak.

"I looked up all about the Hell Stone this morning," Anna pushed herself in a steady tone. "I still am trying to grasp the whole gravity of my findings. I still find it upsetting that someone is dead because of me. What makes it worse is that I can die again or become white ash when my time expires" The Shinigami felt his stomach turn.

"Anna, I'm sorry…" he began to murmur. The woman held up her hand to silence him.

"It's taken me some time to come to this and I don't think it will be as easy in reality," she added. The woman paused to collect her thoughts and closed her eyes. "I am willing to accept my circumstances long enough to find the truth. It will take me a long time, but I just have to suck it up. If I die before then, so be it. I will just deal with the hand I am dealt." She opened her eyes to see a relived Tsuzuki.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked.

"Whatever it takes!" she reassured him. Tsuzuki sailed back into his cheerful self. He felt happy that Anna wasn't angry at him for bringing her back from the dead with an unstable tool from the Elysian Fields. She had thought about where she stood and is working to accept it. Maybe Kato-san was right, in his own shady way…


	7. Friends of the Deceased

_Chapter Six: Friends of the Deceased:_

_August 20th, 2001._

Becky dragged Anna all the way down the hall after their Japanese literature class. The Japanese-American freshman tried to keep up in pace.

"Becky!" she cried, "Slow down, you're hurting me!" The other girl didn't listen; she kept dragging her by the arm and running.

They made it to room 207A. A group of freshmen and sophomores looked up from what they were doing. Anna looked at them feeling out of place. It was senior year of high school all over again. Becky stepped forward.

"Everyone!" she chirped as she clapped her hands. "We have a new member to our photography club!" She pushed Anna forward.

"Say hi to Anna Kimoto!" the leader cheered.

"Hi Anna!" the other members said. The new member gave a little wave.

"Hi," she said softly. Becky turned to her smiling.

"Anna, this is Gillian Gilbert, Angie Waters, Lisa Meriwether, Edith Carpenter, Willow Mayer, Amy McCarthy, Clare Ainsworth, and Henry," she introduced. The leader paused for a breath.

"Great!" Becky cheered. "Now that you're all here, let's get started!" Anna sat down next to Henry, keeping quiet. She already wished that she was somewhere else.

"Lovely!" Becky cheered. Then, she started up the photography club's first meeting of the semester. Anna tried her best to keep up with her fast talking. Suddenly, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She quietly turned around and Henry sat behind her smiling.

"Hey," he whispered. The Japanese-American girl looked at him oddly.

"Hey," she whispered back in an uncertain tone. The boy peered at her through his fine gray-framed glasses.

"Don't mind Becky," he whispered. "She may be pushy and hyped up at times, but she means well." Anna raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is that right?" she asked softly. Henry nodded before pushing up his glasses.

"Her pushiness is just her way of saying that she cares about the people she loves," he explained, "You will learn." Anna looked on at Henry. For the first time since summer, the freshman felt something playfully warm in her heart for him. It wasn't as strong as when Tsuzuki stayed with her that night, but it was sure damn close.

_May 8th, 2009._

Right then, a question wandered into Tsuzuki's mind. "Hey Anna," he said. The woman eyed him.

"Hm?" she asked.

"How did you find out about the Hell Stone?" the Shinigami questioned. Anna perked up at that question.

"Here, let me show you," she said. The woman walked over to her resting laptop. Tsuzuki followed behind. Anna moved the mouse to return to her desktop. The screensaver vanished and the password screen took its place. She scanned her fingerprint and desktop returned.

"Somebody brought my backpack here either last night or this morning," Anna explained while doing so. "A note came with it saying, 'You left this,' no name of course. Does anyone else know that I'm alive again?"

"Just the guys back at Ju-Oh-Cho," Tsuzuki answered. He didn't tell her about Kato just yet. That man seemed to be plotting something for them both. What, he could not be certain.

"That note led me to think my backpack could be a trap," Anna went on. "I checked the bad and everything in it. All of my things were fine. Then, I checked my laptop and flash drive and got this message." She clicked on the Word Document and pulled it up. Tsuzuki read it to himself.

"And you don't know who wrote this?" he asked, looking at the screen. The woman shook her head. The Shinigami thought about that for a moment. He had a guess as to who wrote both notes and got her backpack. The man didn't say anything for he didn't have any proof or know how close she was to him. Tsuzuki decided not to say anything until he had more evidence. Suddenly, something caught his eye.

"Hey, you have a new message," the Shinigami said.

"Huh?" Anna said as she looked up. The Yahoo mail icon on her taskbar flashed like crazy. She clicked on it and Yahoo mail popped up. She had one message in her spam folder. The woman clicked on it. She and Tsuzuki read the address and the title, "Warning!"

"Who is 47blackhand .jp?" the Shinigami asked. Anna shrugged and shook her head. She clicked on the message and both read on.

Kimoto-san:

This is just a friendly warning to you, but your friends from California are here in Japan looking for you. They think you were murdered. The little talkative blonde has been keeping in touch with your aunts back in California.

The sender had no name to message. Anna and Tsuzuki looked at each other worried.

"My friends are here?" she asked. Tsuzuki stared at the e-mail sharing the same thoughts.

"Think it's a trap?" he asked.

"I'm going to e-mail this person back and see," the woman replied. She clicked on reply. A blank message popped up and Anna started typing.

"Who are you and how do you know about me? Are you sure my friends are here in Japan and how did you get my e-mail address? Are you the one who got my backpack and sent the first note?" she said as she typed. Tsuzuki proofread before Anna clicked send. The message sent nicely, however it bounced right back.

"Huh?" Anna asked, "It bounced back because the address doesn't exist!"

"A temporary address?" he asked.

"Seems that way," the woman answered.

"What do you want to do?" Tsuzuki asked. Anna turned around to him.

"We've got no choice but to wait and see, I guess," she said with a shrug. The Shinigami eyed her.

"It could be a trap," he pointed out again.

"What choice do we have?" she asked. "Becky won't let up until she has answers."

"Becky?" Tsuzuki asked.

"One of the friends in question," Anna answered, "She is like the alpha female in this photography club we were in during college. She was the president, in fact."

"Photo club, huh?" Tsuzuki asked impressed after learning a little bit about Kimoto-san.

"I'll talk about that later," she quickly brushed off, "Right now, we need to deal with my friends."

"Right," he said, "I'll call Hisoka and have him meet us near the police station." Anna looked at him oddly.

"The police station; why there?" she was about to ask. However, the woman answered her own question in her head. "Oh, I see! Because they are looking for me!" she said after it hit her.

"That's right," Tsuzuki said. "We probably should get going. But first, we should get something to eat!" Anna's face went blank.

"What? Why?" she asked on the last part of his comment. A sweat drop formed on Tsuzuki's head as he shook it.

"Never mind!" he said quickly, "Let's just go!"

"Right," Anna replied. The woman turned back to her laptop and closed everything down. Once she shut down her laptop, Tsuzuki held onto Anna and teleported out to Tokyo Police Station.


	8. Lucy

_Chapter Seven: Lucy:_

_March 12th, 1983._

Kato showed Daisuke around the quiet village the next morning. The eighteen-year-old held eleven-day old Anna close to his chest as she slept. Kato wondered about his new guest. What's a high school boy doing all the way out here in the sticks with a baby? Daisuke seemed like a teenage runaway. Kato wanted to ask, but decided not to.

_He'll talk when he's ready_, Kato resolved as he watched the young man change his daughter's diaper just an hour ago. Daisuke and his baby stayed quiet for the entire tour around the neighborhood and fields as he observed everything. The men came back to Kato's house by noon. The man turned to the boy with the baby in his arms.

"So," Kato summed up, "What do you think?" Daisuke pondered everything that he had learned just hours before.

"No one comes looking for anyone here?" he asked with his eyes narrowed.

"Yes," Kato answered, "The city police don't even bother us here." The boy raised an eyebrow at him.

"So you house criminals here?" he asked.

"No," the old man said, "Rarely any persons your age or younger come here."

"Why is that?" the young asked, now intrigued.

"The village is pretty hard to find most of the time. Only when found on accident do we old timers get any young people like you here," the older man explained. Daisuke nodded as he prepared to ask him the _big_ question.

"And this village is all on consummated ground?" he asked.

"Yes, the main priest has blesses this village himself every year," Kato answered with confidence in his voice. The boy began to smile after he had all the facts that he needed.

"Great," he said, "We'll stay."

_May 8th, 2009._

Anna and Tsuzuki made it outside of the police station. They found Hisoka waiting for them at the glass doors. He took one look at Anna and frowned. The boy, along with Tatsumi, Watari, the Gushoshin twins, and Chief Konoe, wasn't too keen on having Anna alive again given the circumstances that arose with this case.

_She's here?_, Hisoka thought, _She should be dead now!_ He kept this to himself due to more important matters were at hand. Anna and Tsuzuki joined him.

"Yo!" the older Shinigami greeted him with a wave.

"Alright," his partner spoke up. "Tsuzuki and I will go inside and find about your friends. You stay here out of sight." Anna looked at him with a blank look on her face.

"Why?" she asked. Hisoka glared at her.

"You're supposed to be dead, remember?" he hissed.

"Oh right…" the woman mumbled. A sweat drop formed on her head at that little reminded tidbit. Tsuzuki lightly patted the boy on the shoulder.

"Calm down, Hisoka," he said, "She just asked a little question." Hisoka looked up at him with irritation in his eyes.

"She should be dead now! When are you taking the stone out of her?" his icy glare seemed to ask. Tsuzuki looked at him with a cheesy grin on his face. He didn't really want to do that and something in him wouldn't let him. The Shinigami couldn't piece together the reason just yet. Pulling out the Hell Stone would be so easy. Just reach into her heart and take it out; problem solved. However, Tsuzuki just couldn't do that.

Anna saw the look in Hisoka's eyes. She could tell he didn't want her alive. He didn't need to say it out loud. Anna would let that get her down. Hisoka would have to deal with her being alive for the time being. Once the tension died down, the boys turned back to Anna.

"Do you understand?" Hisoka asked. The woman nodded as she forced herself to smile.

"Good," the boy responded. He turned to his partner.

"Ready to go?" Hisoka asked.

"Yes," Tsuzuki answered. The boys walked into the police station. Anna hid out of sight around a darkened corner from surveillance cameras and waited. The Shinigami came back out ten minutes later. The woman peeked from around her corner when she heard footsteps coming towards her. She stepped out of hiding when she saw them.

"Well?" she asked in anticipation.

"They were here," Tsuzuki answered rather grimace, "But your friends left after the police brushed them off with the promise of looking into your case again." Anna's face slowly dropped.

"Left? Where did they go?" she asked.

"Shiba Park Hotel," Hisoka answered. The woman pressed her lips together as she tried to stomach all of this.

"Alright," she said, "Let's go there." The three of them got close and flew off. The three of them arrived outside of the Shiba Park Hotel. All of the lights on in the heavy spring night competed with the other lights in the city. The building itself looked nice like one of the lavish hotels on the travel channel. Anna had a pretty good idea of who was footing the bill with her group of friends. _Clare always had the money to travel and stay on top-rate places like this_, she thought, narrowing her eyes.

"Okay," she spoke up. "Let's go in."

"How do we find your friends?" Tsuzuki asked.

"My best guess is to find the fanciest room in the whole place," Anna suggested, "One of them is really rich and only goes for the best when she's traveling."

"Right," the Shinigami partners agreed. Tsuzuki held onto Anna as the three of them teleported inside. The group decided to scatter out and look for Anna's Californian friends on the seventh floor. So far, they hadn't run into any Americans at all. Tsuzuki walked down the hall looking. Suddenly, he felt someone playfully covering his eyes from behind. The Shinigami stopped in his tracks and sighed out loud in discomfort.

"What is it now, Lucy?" he asked. The hands slowly lifted from his amethyst eyes. Tsuzuki turned and there stood Lucy Fisher. The Goth woman gave him a huge grin. The Shinigami forced himself to smile. Lucy acted worse than any prostitute in Japan. S&M was her best friend in the bedroom. Ask any man in Japan, they would agree. Lucy had the body and looks to match. Her various flings found themselves drawn in with her wide hips, flat stomach, tone legs, round, tight ass, small waist, and big, shapely breasts. One thing no one could forget about her was Lucy adored all things Goth. She looked like a vampire hooker with her black and red sexy attire. Her heels and mails added to her dark charms. Lucy even dyed her hair a cold black right after she broke up with her first boyfriend. However, sex wasn't the only thing on her mind. Lucy drank worse than Tsuzuki and Watari combined. Plus, she out-smoked a chimney. So much of this wild behavior made even the most laid-back nervous.

"Hey!" Lucy said smirking like a hungry cat.

"Hi Lucy…" he said with a sweat drop on his head. _Of all the people to run into tonight…_

"What are you doing out here tonight?" Tsuzuki asked. Lucy looked at him with her blood red eyes.

"I could ask you the same thing, sexy!" she remarked. Panic bells went off in Tsuzuki's mind. He didn't enjoy dealing with Lucy whenever they crossed paths on cases. She tried to seduce him whenever she had the chance. Tsuzuki lost count of all the times she tried to stick her hands down his trousers, whisper her naughty fantasies in his ear, and ram her tongue down his throat. That woman never took a hint that he wasn't interested in her. However in the end, Tsuzuki considered her to be the lesser of two evils. Lucy may be worse than Muraki and Hakushaku, yet she was really a good person after it was said and done.

"I'm working right now," he said. Lucy's eyes lit up in curiosity.

"A murder?" she asked.

"Well… yeah, sort of," he said in a rushed tone.

"Sweet," Lucy said, showing him her pearly white teeth. She hugged him tight around the waist. Tsuzuki really panicked as those familiar hands of her made their way down his trousers to his member.

_Oh shit!_, he thought as he looked for any means of escape, _What do I do now?_ Lucy looked up at him with fake sweetness.

"I was on a date here earlier," she told him. "He's gone out to get us something to eat."

"That's nice…" the Shinigami mumbled. He slowly looked up at the hall ceiling. He wished for some help soon.

"Tsuzuki?" a female's voice asked. He and Lucy both looked up. Anna and Hisoka raced towards them. Lucy took one look at the living host and gave her a fixed stare.

"We found my friends," the Japanese-American woman announced as she and Hisoka got closer to them. "They are in room 7—" She went quiet when she and Hisoka saw Tsuzuki with Lucy. The Goth slut turned to the Shinigami.

"And who's this?" she asked, almost hissing at him. Tsuzuki felt his back break out into a cold sweat.

"This is Anna…" he said. The other woman stared at them. Lucy thought of a good string of cuss words to hurl at her. She looked at Anna coldly.

"Uh-huh!" she snapped. Lucy let go of Tsuzuki and disappeared down the hall. The trio looked on at the slutty Goth.

"Who was that?" Anna asked. Both boys didn't answer.

Later, things wound down some. Tsuzuki went to the bar to clear his head. This just keeps getting worse and worse. Maybe, he should pull out now. Take the stone from Anna's soul and end it all. Tsuzuki lowered his head.

'"_What's wrong with me?_, he thought. _Why can't I just end this mess right now?_ His mind went back to Anna. Her existence made it all confusing for him. The Shinigami found himself frustrated by her, but nevertheless happy to see her again after so long.

Suddenly, he noticed someone next to him at the bar. Tsuzuki looked up and saw Kato again. Agitation woke itself back up. The other man looked and saw his "friend."

"Oh Tsuzuki-san," Kato said with a smirk, "We can't seem to stop running into each other. You better be careful or you'll give the impression that you're stalking me. I hate to say it, but I'm not ready to die yet!" Tsuzuki frowned at him.

"What do you want now?" he questioned. Kato ordered some sake and took a drink. He turned to the Shinigami.

"I showed that same boy who brought Anna-chan to my house around my old village," he said as if remembering the good old days with one of his friends.

"Cut the crap," Tsuzuki hissed. Kato gave him a little shrug.

"You prefer for me to use his name?" he asked. "Alright then, I showed Daisuke around my old village. He and the baby stayed quiet the entire time." Kato took another drink.

"I wondered about Daisuke," he said. "What was an eighteen-year-old high school boy with a baby doing in a village of the elderly? I assumed he was a runaway. I didn't ask; figured he would tell me when he was ready."

"Why not call the police on him?" Tsuzuki questioned. Kato told another drink before setting down his bottle.

"No one reported him missing," the older man answered, "And we didn't want any trouble at my village, so I let him stay with no questions asked." He finished his sake and set the bottle down on the bar.

"Strange thing was," Kato finished, "This boy, Daisuke, asked if no one would find him there. I told him no. He also asked if the village was on consummated ground. Wonder why." Tsuzuki looked on interested.

"He was escaping from his family?" he suggested.

"Maybe," Kato said. The Shinigami stared at him with an eyebrow raised.

_What's with this guy?_, he thought as Kato ordered another drink.

Meanwhile, Hisoka followed Lucy to her room. He wondered why she pulled him away in such a rush. The boy could sense she was pissed; he didn't need empathy to figure that one out. She always grinned in anger, lust, and mischief. Right now she was pretty pissed off.

They came into her room. Hisoka looked around as the red light about blinked him. Tonight, the room looked like an S&M parlor. Hisoka didn't want to know what Lucy and her date were up to earlier on.

"I don't get it," he said. "Why did you drag me in here?" Lucy grinned as she walked over to the nightstand. She pulled open the drawer and reached inside. Lucy pulled out a pack of cigarettes and drew out a fresh one. She put it in her mouth and lit up. Her real mood began to surface.

"Five fucking years," Lucy complained, "Five fucking years! For five years, I have tried to get that man's attention. I got nothing! Then Barbie comes along. She does in one day that I have been trying to do for five fucking years!" Hisoka looked confused at first until it hit him. He tried to keep from laughing.

"You think Tsuzuki and Anna are…" he said.

"Yeah!" Lucy said. Hisoka didn't say a word. She would never listen anyway. Let her figure it out for herself. Lucy may be a slut, but she sure wasn't stupid.


	9. Predator Rising

_Chapter Eight: Predator Rising:_

_December 23rd, 1950._

She stood off to the side in the snow. Her twin sister, Juriko, skated gracefully on the ice. Her twin stared on bitterly. Everyone always focused on Juriko. She had it all: looks, charm, grace, brains, and a strong sense of independence. However, her sister knew otherwise. Juriko could be as cold as the snow that almost came on their birthday every year. The twin knew because they were just like their mother and the rest of the Eda clan—sweet and upbeat to the world, but cruel and cold in reality.

Despite it being a cold birthday, Juriko's sister was burning hot with envy. Too many years she had been ignored, sixteen too many to be exact. The girl glared on at her twin. Juriko looked like an ideal winter princess. The weak winter sun gently kissed and caressed her long flowing midnight blue hair. The boys from down the street came to gawk at this dark angel as she skated around on the ice she wished so badly for her birthday today.

Sure, the twin looked just as beautiful as her sister, but did anyone ever notice? No, it was always about Juriko! Her sister saw her as a burden in her life. Many she killed Juriko in her head. In fact, the twin was having another death vision about her sister right now. She sneered at her current thought.

_It would be funny if the ice were to give way and break under her!_, the twin thought at her highest bitter point.

Then suddenly for no reason at all, the ice cracked and broke under Juriko's feet. She fell right into the icy black water below. The boys all ran forward to save her as she screamed out in terror.

"Help!" Juriko cried as she tried to keep her head above. "Water… too cold! Can't swim here! Help! Help! Help me!" Two boys ran home to get rescue. Throughout the chaos, Juriko's twin just stood off in the distance. Her face was drained of any emotion. The girl just watched on as her twin sister was drowning in the black icy cold water.

By the time the adults could pull her out, she had already drowned with hypothermia. Eda Juriko was only sixteen on her birthday.

May 8th, 2009.

"YOU LET HER LIVE?!" she shirked, "YOU IDIOT!" She had a fifty-six year old man levitating off of ground with her powers as she choked him telepathically. The man struggled and gasped for air.

"But mama!" he choked. "I did kill Anna like you said. I strangled her with wire until she went blue in the face. I even threw the body out the window to make sure she died! I went down and burned our mark into her wrists as you told us to! I did everything you told me! I swear! I swear!" She glared at him crossly.

"THEN WHY THE HELL IS SHE STILL ALIVE?!" the old woman screeched. She tightened her grip around her son's throat. The old man gasped for air as he tried to break away from her grip.

"I don't know!" he forced out. "She must have been resurrected or something! I killed her, I swear! I'm not lying!" The old woman's face changed as she dropped her son right on the hard tatami floor. He landed with a crash. The man sat on all fours gasping for air. His two younger brothers watched on with big, panicked eyes. Their mother had the temper of a raging bull at times. She had scared and tortured them into submission over the years. That act a few seconds ago was rather tame compared to what she did to them in the past. Coupled with her years of witchcraft, that woman was a ticking time bomb waiting to blow! She turned around to her boys, thinking.

"This changes everything then," she said. She looked at her three remaining sons. They looked at her confused.

"What do you mean?" the youngest asked. She didn't answer, but she knew. Anna being alive again meant only one thing.

_He's back again!_, she thought. The woman smirked at that revelation. Her boys watched on nervously. She was plotting something; they could tell.

"Mama," the middle child said. "What are you up to?" The old woman walked over to the window. She picked a handful of ashes from the old fireplace along the way and chanted over them. The woman opened her eyes and blew on them. They formed into a Hell butterfly. She smirked at her latest creation.

"Go out and seek Anna!" she commanded. "Report back to me as soon as you find her!" The butterfly fluttered away into the night. The woman watched as it did so. She turned back to her boys who were staring on in wonder. She smiled at them kindly.

"Go home to your wives and children," the woman ordered, "I'll take it from there tonight!" They still stared at her. The old lady frowned at her sons.

"Go on!" she snapped, "Go home! I'm sick of seeing your faces tonight! Go on, shoo!" The sons left as fast as they could. She watched them run away, still frowning. Once they were gone, the woman turned back to the window. She sneered as she looked out onto the night.

_You won't cheat death this time, Anna!_, she thought, _I _will_ kill you, with all of my being!_

Meanwhile at a bath house, Kato sensed her again.

_She's going to kill Malchik!_, he thought in alarm. He knew how far she would go to kill anyone she hated. Kato had always known since that morning in 1950. He always believed that she caused the ice to break under Juriko's feet that day. He knew, but never told anyone. He didn't have any proof and the whole thing was dismissed as a tragic accident. If she could get away with murdering her own twin sister, Anna's second death would be ten times worse. Kato came to a decision right there.

_I have to warn Malchik!_, he thought. The man quickly leapt out of the bath, put on his robe, and hurried to the locker room.

At the hotel bar, Tsuzuki noticed someone standing next to him. He looked up and saw Anna standing over him.

"Oh, how did you find me here?" he asked slightly surprised.

"Hisoka begrudgingly told me you would probably be down here," she replied, "I don't think he's too fond of me."

"Probably not," the older Shinigami said, nodding.

"Is this seat taken?" Anna asked. Tsuzuki smiled as he shook his head.

"No," the Shinigami said rather upbeat. Anna smiled at him warmly.

"Thanks," she said. The woman sat down next to the man. She ordered a cherry soda. Tsuzuki watched her with a smile on his face. Finally, it's just a normal person to talk to for a change. Anna got her soda and took a drink. She turned to the Shinigami, looking happy.

"Oh dear," Anna broke the silence with, "What a mess this has all turned into!" Tsuzuki looked up at her on that comment.

"Hm?" he asked. She gave him a little shrug.

"I mean," the woman went on. "I'm supposed to be dead, my friends are here looking for me, someone's bought my house this morning, and my killer could come back and attack me once they realize I'm alive again." Tsuzuki looked on at her in new interest.

"Hisoka-kun told you everything?" he asked.

"Yeah, she said with a now, "Loud and clear to no end!" What could they say? Hisoka _did_ have a point there. Tsuzuki screwed up BIG time on this one. Konoe and even all of Ju-Oh-Cho wouldn't let him live it down any time soon. Tsuzuki stared deep into Anna's rich greenish-brown eyes.

"So, what do you want to do?" he asked. Anna thought about that as she looked down at her soda. The obvious answer would be to balance everything out until she had a stable plan. The woman would have to make it work even with time against her. She lightly took hold of his hand. Tsuzuki stared at her.

"Kimoto-san…" he murmured.

"My fate is up to you," the woman said as she built up her confidence with each word, "If you want to end this now, I'm fine with it. My life's yours to deal with in the end." Anna turned and looked up him with anxiety in her eyes. Tsuzuki didn't say a word. She sounded dead serious here. He tried to piece her offer together in his head. She basically told him that he was her savior or executioner.

Without thinking, he reached a rash answer. Tsuzuki embraced Anna's hands as well.

"Well then, I'll let you live until we can find out who killed you and your father!" he declared. Anna looked genuinely surprised as her jaw slowly dropped.

"Y-You mean it?" she asked. "You would actually do that?"

"It's like you said," Tsuzuki answered, "Your life is in my hands. So, I will do my best to keep you safe until we find the truth!" Anna's heart raced.

"I thank you, Tsuzuki!" she breathed out as she bowed her head. The Shinigami smiled at her kindly.

"It's nothing," he said. The man and woman let go of each others' hands. Anna returned to her drink. That helped clear up one of her problems. _What do I do about the people who just bought my house?_, she thought. Tsuzuki smiled at her again. The host glanced up when she felt his eyes on her.

"What is it?" she asked. The Shinigami looked at her like she was a new exhibit on display at a popular museum.

"Photo club, huh?" he asked. Anna gave him a modest little smile as her cheeks lightly reddened.

"Yeah," she admitted humbly as she rubbed the back of her head. "I was kind of drafted by Becky my freshman year of college."

"I see," her guardian said, "You said that someone bought your house today. What are they like?"

"I haven't met the mother yet," Anna replied, "But I've met the little girl with her. She's pretty cute." Anna paused as her tone began to change. "However, they both pose a hang-up in me hiding at my old house."

"So," Tsuzuki said, "What are you going to do?" Anna ran her finger around the edge of the glass.

"Now that I think about it," she said, "The girl and her mother could serve as a cover for me in case the killer decides to search the manor for me."

"That could work out," Tsuzuki said, thinking. The plan led him back to his earlier questions that he was dying to ask Anna.

"Hey Kimoto-san," he said.

"Please," Anna spoke up with a fresh playful tone, "You don't have to do all that. Just call me Anna. A-n-na, can you say that?" Tsuzuki looked at her, blinking.

"Okay, Kimo- I mean, Anna-san," he said.

"No, just Anna, no 'Anna-san,'" she corrected him, "A-n-na."

"Anna," Tsuzuki began again.

"Very good," Anna replied told him. Tsuzuki's face looked all lost and puzzled as a sweat drop formed on his head. _She wasn't joking about messing with the people she likes, was she?_, he thought. Still, that wouldn't detour him from his original mission.

"Anna," he said once he got his head back in order. The woman gave up at him over her empty glass.

"Yes?" she asked. Tsuzuki perked up for the first big question.

"Tell me more about the photography club and what college was like for you," he requested. Anna raised an eyebrow at him.

"Now, why would you want to hear a boring story like that?" she asked, joking around with him.

"Because," Tsuzuki said, sounding like a little child, "Since I have to keep guarding you like this, I should at least get to know you more; don't you think?" Anna sat straight with a little smirk on her face. She folded her arms across her chest.

"Heh," the woman replied, "Fair enough. I suppose I could give you a little bit of my life's story. But let me warn you now, it's going to be a bit boring at some parts."

"It's okay," the Shinigami replied, "We've got all night, anyway."

"Very well," Anna said, "Which story would you like to hear first?"

"Tell me more about the photography club," Tsuzuki said.

"Alright," she replied.

They spent the rest of the night at the bar talking about Anna's college days over drinks. Some of the stories seemed lively about how goofy her friends were at San Diego University while others told of a lonelier tale of her trying to hang onto her Japanese roots and never forgetting about her father since his death. Tsuzuki sat with a rosy glow on his face as he learned more about the girl he had stayed with and kissed ten years ago on that fateful Halloween night. Each word was an invitation to take Kimoto Anna apart and learn more about her.

However outside of the hotel, the predator rose again. The Hell butterfly perched itself against the window. It found Anna and spied on her and Tsuzuki at the hotel bar. The messenger hung around for a few more seconds and flew off. It returned home to the old woman. She awaited the results.

"Well?" she asked the butterfly. The butterfly landed on her finger.

"I have found Anna!" it exclaimed. "She is at the bar in Shiba Park Hotel. She's staying at the old Kimoto Manor. Anna also has Shinigami protecting her!" The old woman took this newfound information to heart. A smirk came across her face.

"Shinigami, huh?" she asked. "Things just took an interesting twist." The butterfly faded back into ash. The old woman grinned in the darkness.


	10. The Neighbors

_Chapter Nine: The Neighbors:_

_March 18th, 2000._

SPLASH! Anna dove into the school pool. This place became her sanctuary. The cool water relaxed her when she wanted a place to clear her head. Her shrink did right by her this time. He pressed her to join clubs and being activate in school.

"Being activate helps cure sadness," he told her. Anna didn't believe him, but she decided to humor him. At first, Anna couldn't fit in anywhere. Moving from Japan to California was such a sudden change. In fact, the high school just dropped her in the middle of the junior year of the semester. Anna was about to give up when she discovered the swim team just two months before.

In the water, Anna could clear her mind here. She swam underwater to free herself. The pool added to her high "glass box" the same way her studies and the computer would.

_May 16th, 2009._

Six days later, Anna got a new e-mail on her Yahoo account. Curious, she opened up her mail. There was one new message from nightowl .jp in her spam box.

_Hm?_, she thought as clicked on the message. The woman read it to herself.

Kimoto-san,

I have opened a bank account for you under the name of Niwa Midori. I have put most of my wealth into this account, so don't spend it all in one place. Only use the money for your basic needs. I will put in more at the end of each week. Your card should come in the mail this afternoon. Please be on your guard. Your killers know you are alive again and they will try to kill you.

She didn't find any signature. Could it be the same person? They had money for her? No point in e-mailing back; probably a fake address here too. All Anna could do was wait until the mail came in this afternoon. However, more worried fell on her plate. She looked up when she heard the doorbell ring.

_But, the movers' just left_, she thought. Curious, Anna walked out of Daisuke's office and peeked into the hallway. Yoko-chan's mom was at the door talking to someone. Anna crept closer for a better look.

A woman stood on the outside talking to the young mother and child. Actually, two women and a man were talking to them. The main woman looked like a straight up tomboy. Her long bright orange hair was tied back into a tight ponytail. She looked somewhat decent this morning with her white and see-through blouse and wrinkled, messy jeans. The woman's gold bracelet, rings, chain necklace, and six silver earrings could fetch a pretty price though. Too much bling for Anna's taste, that was for sure. The other two looked rather subtle or at least the guy did.

The other woman had a Loli Goth theme to her style with a short black play dress with white ruffles underneath. She had her long black hair up in two swaying ponytails. This woman's child-like manner and the stuffed black and white cat she to her chest complete the embodiment of the Loli Goth style.

The man looked normal with jeans and a t-shirt. Just by looking at him, anyone could guess that he was American with his short light brown hair and round blue eyes. Something about these three seemed off to Anna. She couldn't quite explain it right away. Maybe this could be her killers? The main woman grinned at the young mother.

"Hi!" she beamed, "We live down the road from you. You must be new here!"

"Uh yeah," the young mother answered, "My daughter and I bought this house a few days ago."

The tomboy gave off a low while. "They finally sold the manor, huh?"

The young mother pushed up her pink-framed glasses. "Yep, I'm Tanaka Rihoko and this is my little girl, Yoko-chan!"

The tomboy grinned and stuck out her hand at her new neighbor. "I'm Emiko. These are my roommates, Hotaru and Mike." The other woman and man waved at mother and child.

"Hi," Rihoko said as she took Emiko's hand and shook it, "Nice to meet you." Emiko peeked into the house over the new neighbor's shoulder. The young mother looked at her confused.

"Uh… What are you doing?" she asked. The other woman smirked into the house.

"I see you already have a welcoming party here!" Emiko announced.

"Huh?" Rihoko asked as she looked her behind her. Anna froze when they saw her.

_Oh crap!_, she thought, _They found me!_ Yoko-chan perked up when she saw Anna.

"Anna-san!" she cheered, waving frantically. She turned to her mother.

"See, mom!" the little girl said, "Here's the ghost lady I was talking about! It's Kimoto Anna-san!" A sweat drop formed Anna's head when she heard those words.

_Again with the ghost thing?_, she thought. Rihoko's eyes lit up like the stars in the sky.

"Oh cool!" she yelped, "My first actual ghost!" The young mother raced over to Anna and grabbed her by the hands and shook them wildly.

"Pleased to meet you," Rihoko exclaimed. "My daughter has told me so much about you!"

"Uh… Thanks, I guess…" Anna mumbled. Emiko smirked at the "ghost."

_Found you!_, she thought. "So," Emiko said aloud, "May we all come in?" In few minutes, everyone sat in the living room surrounded by packed boxes.

"Don't mind the mess," Rihoko said as she returned with the tea, "Yoko-chan and I are still unpacking. We just got the last of our things this morning."

"No, it's fine," Mike said. Everyone got their tea and took a drink. Emiko took one look at Anna. She heard a little rumor through Meifu that Ju-Oh-Cho had brought a descendant of the Eda-Kimoto clan from the dead possibly to trap them to be judged. However, she wasn't convinced that was it.

_I think they're hiding something more about this_, Emiko thought. _I mean, how can they be so certain that she won't betray them in some way? Heck, she could even go rogue and look for revenge for herself._ The Japanese-American woman noticed the tomboy woman staring at her.

"What?" she asked as she tried to sound polite. Emiko shrugged with her tea in her hand.

"You look familiar," she said, "Haven't I seen you from somewhere?" Anna stared blankly at her.

"No…" she replied. Emiko's smirk said that she didn't buy it at all.

"I must have seen you from somewhere," she pressed on, "You look like that interpreter that was murdered last week."

"You're right!" Hotaru exclaimed. "She does look like the dead interpreter!" Anna sat, focusing herself to smile under the pressure.

_Uh-oh, they're on to me!_, she thought with all eyes on her. Rihoko straightened her glasses.

"Anna-san," she said, "Is this true?" Anna bit her lower lip as she tried to think of something to say. A "yes" or "no" answer would just cause her to dig a deeper hole for herself. Nothing that would smooth things over came to mind either. She shut her eyes and hoped for someone to get her out. Suddenly, the door bell rang again. Everyone looked up right away as Anna breathed out in relief.

"I'll get that," Rihoko said. She stood up and hurried to the front door. Emiko and Anna watched each on the defense.

"You really do look like that interpreter that was murdered back on the sixth," Emiko said. Anna shook her head.

"That's not possible," she argued, "That woman is dead." Emiko set down her cup on the coffee table.

"This is true," she replied, "But, now this is just supposing here, what if she was brought back to live in some way and living among other humans?" Anna tried to laugh off such an idea.

"That's silly! That kind theory exists in manga and TV," she brushed off. "I mean, what would be the motive if that happened?"

"That's what I would like to know," Emiko said before taking another sip of tea. Anna forced herself to smile after that exchange. _She's on to me!_, she screamed in head.

Rihoko slid open the front door while all of that was going on in the living room. Tsuzuki and Hisoka stood on the other side. The young mother gave them a rather puzzled face.

"Uh… can I help you?" she asked. Tsuzuki smiled.

"Hi, we're friends of Anna," he greeted her, "I'm Tsuzuki and this is Hisoka." The boy bowed properly.

"Hey," he said.

"She told us that she would be staying at her old house since she got back to Japan," the older Shinigami went on, "Is this the right place?" The young mother's eyes lit up as she gave them a huge grin.

"Great!" she cheered, "You're friends of the ghost! Come on in!" Both boys had sweat drops on their heads.

_Anna wasn't joking about the ghost fanatic, was she?_, Tsuzuki thought. The boys followed Rihoko into the manor as she gleefully walked inside. Anna herself was just happy to have some back-up with the tough questions that could come her way.

Rihoko made more instant tea while Emiko studied the two boys closely. _Shinigami, huh?_, she thought with a devilish smile, _This should be fun to watch!_ Tsuzuki and Hisoka had their suspicions about Emiko and her roommates as well.

_There is something off about them…_, Tsuzuki thought. Hisoka nudged him on the arm.

"You sensed it too?" the younger Shinigami whispered.

"Yeah," he whispered back, "You think they might be tied to the Eda-Kimoto clan?"

"I can't really say just yet," Hisoka whispered back. "I would have to get closer to them. I can't really feel their emotions flowing through me right now." Hotaru lowered her cup to act on her part of the mini-mission. Emiko looked at the other woman.

"Hoto-chan," she said, sounding concern for her roommate, "Is something wrong? Are you sick?" The other woman rose to her feet with her fists clenched at her sides.

"Where is your bathroom?" Hotaru asked in a small voice. Rihoko pointed down the hall.

"It's down the hall to your left," she said. Hotaru raced down the given direction. Close to an hour passed and everyone looked down the hall.

"Is she okay?" Hisoka asked. Emiko timed herself before making her own more.

"I don't know…" she mumbled. The tomboy got up and walked down the hall to check on her roommate. Tsuzuki, Hisoka, and Anna all looked at each other before looking down the hall. The trio waited a few seconds before following Emiko.

Emiko made it to the bathroom and put her ear to the door. Water ran inside like a stream. Emiko knocked on the door.

"Hoto-chan," she whispered, "Have you finished everything?"

"Yes," the other woman replied, "But there's a problem." Emiko looked rather puzzled at that statement.

"What's wrong?" she asked. The door slid open in and Hotaru looked at her emotionless at first.

"Hoto-chan?" Emiko asked. Then, Loli Goth rushed forward, wrapped the other woman in a needy embrace, and kissed her on the lips. Her girlfriend's eyes widened with alarm. She knew her lover would pull something like this, but not right now. Hotaru let go and slowly pulled away. She smiled at her beloved in a warm way. Emiko blinked at her.

"Hoto-chan, couldn't you have waited until we got home?" she asked with a sigh. The other woman shook her head.

"Uh-uh," she said, sounding like an innocent little girl. Emiko rolled her eyes and dropped her shoulders.

"You always do this," Emiko complained, "Can't you see we're on an important mission here?" Hotaru only gave her another excited kiss respond. This time, Emiko gave up and kissed back.

_Anything to keep her happy!_, she thought, _She probably wouldn't listen to me anyway._ Hotaru pinned her against the wall into the coming flood of kisses. Emiko's hands wrapped around the Loli Goth's waist and pulled her in closer as she used her tongue to pry open her lover's lips. Her lover found herself more than happy to open mouth and receive. Emiko's nails dug into the back of the Loli Goth's black dress.

_Who cares about this mission anymore?_, she thought. _I haven't had this in days!_ The other woman grabbed onto her shirt as if to start unbuttoning it. She just loved to do these passionate spur of the moment type gestures in public places. For this past month, Emiko had been too busy on her laptop to even give her girlfriend any attention. Hotaru all but gave up on relighting the passionate fire between them. For a good while there, they were about to become one of those passionate couples who just live together day-in and day-out. As a matter of fact, the Loli Goth used this mini mission as an excuse to trap her girlfriend like this. The woman smirked in her head with each wave of kisses.

_I have you now_, she thought. _There is no excuse for you not to pay me any attention now!_ Hotaru already started to entertain thoughts of pulling Emiko into the bathroom and having quick one. The very thought already made her soak up in her white, lacy panties. Her girlfriend's hand even slipped her skirt and grabbed her in the crotch.

Sadly that ended up on hold because Emiko happened to hear; "Hey is Hotaru …" The couple broke off the steamy kiss and looked up caught-off guard. Tsuzuki, Anna, and Hisoka were staring at them in big-eyed shock. Nobody dared to speak for what forever pregnant minute. Emiko held her girlfriend's hand with such a tight grip.

"What?" she asked boldly, "We're lesbians, can't we be in love and be free to express it where ever we want?" The trio stared at her unable to tell if this was for real or a cover for something else.

A few minutes later, everyone came back in the living room. This time, the lesbian couple sat close to each other. Hotaru had her hand on Emiko's leg, slightly rubbing it. The tomboy had her arm around her girlfriend's shoulders. The rest of the crew stared on at them.

"So," Tsuzuki spoke up, "How long have you been together?"

"Eight years!" the girls said together.

"Wow!" Rihoko mouthed.

"That long?" Anna asked. Hotaru nodded and grinned in pride.

"When I first saw Hoto-chan, I knew I just had to have her," Emiko bragged as she rubbed on Hotaru's shoulder, "She resisted at first, but I didn't give up. Once I got Hoto-chan, no man or woman stood a chance!" Hotaru giggled and nuzzled her on the cheek.

"How cute…" Rihoko said with a smile on her face. Mike rolled his eyes.

"You just couldn't wait until we got home, didn't you?" he asked his roommates under his breath.

"But it was so worth it," Hotaru whispered back while grinning.

"You're hopeless," the American man muttered. The little party went on late into the afternoon. Emiko, Hotaru, and Mike excused themselves to go home about four o'clock. Rihoko, Yoko-chan, and Anna saw them off.

"Nice people, weren't they?" Rihoko asked as she waved goodbye to their neighbors.

"Yeah…" Anna replied. Her suspicions still didn't leave her.

Later, Anna lied back on her futon thinking about her new neighbors. Emiko's words made her cringe. _How could she have been that spot on?_, Anna wondered. The tone of her words made it that much worse.

_Please don't let her be the killer_, the woman pleaded to herself. _Please don't her be the killer!_ Anna tightly shut her eyes and clung to her black tank top.

Her thoughts were interrupted were she heard her door slide open. The woman opened her eyes and looked up. Tsuzuki stood in the doorway looking in.

"Hey," he said with a wave and grin. Anna sat up and gave him a little smile.

"Have you come to spy on me again?" she asked with a playful tone in her voice.

"Pretty much," Tsuzuki said. He walked into the office and looked around. His eyes caught the back wall with the "hidden closet."

"What are all of these?" he asked. Anna turned to the wall in question. All the way from Tsuzuki's left to the right side was covered in pictures of Anna and her life up until now. The woman smiled a little warm smile as she walked over to the Shinigami.

"You like it?" she asked, "I got bored last night and did a little decorating since I was going to be here for a little bit longer." Tsuzuki followed Anna's life story with his eyes. The first picture was of an eighteen-year-old Daisuke holding a seven-day old Anna high up in his arms in what looked like a dorm room. All of the years- infancy, preschool, grade school, junior high, high school, America, college, and now—looked like stills from a popular slice of life movie. Anna looked so happy and free-spirited in each one. One picture caught Tsuzuki's eye in particular.

The girl was eighteen in school swimsuit by an indoor pool in this one. He could tell just by looking at the big grin on her face that this was a good memory. The Shinigami looked at her.

"When was this one?" he asked as he pointed at that picture. A small smile flashed across Anna face when she saw it.

"Swim team in my junior year," she replied.

"Really?" Tsuzuki asked, intrigued.

"Yeah," Anna said, "After I left Japan, I felt so depressed and isolated. I didn't really know anybody in a foreign country and my English wasn't very good at the time. The guidance counselor pushed me to join some clubs as an attempt to help. 'Being active helps cure depression,' he said over and over again. So after Christmas break, I took his advice and joined the swim team."

"Did it help?" the Shinigami asked.

"Not really," the woman said, shaking her head, "But I did have fun and the water helped to clear my head."

"I see," Tsuzuki replied as he smiled. Last night, he learned about college Anna. Tonight, it was a snippet of junior year Anna. The missing story of the ten-year gap came together piece by piece.

"You can have the picture if you like," Anna offered as she leaned on his shoulder. Tsuzuki turned and gave her a stunned look on his face.

"Really? You mean it?" he asked.

"Yeah, go on, take it!" she encouraged, nodding. Tsuzuki paused to let her offer sink in. She was letting him have a piece of her memories. What did this mean, did she fully trust him now?

"Okay…" Tsuzuki said at last. The man turned back to the wall and reached towards the picture in question. He gently took it off of the hard white wall. The Shinigami carefully removed the duck tape from the backside and gently stuffed it in his jacket. Tsuzuki turned back to the wall of pictures. A gap now sat where the picture once was. He looked back at Anna.

"What about your little timeline thingy?" the Shinigami asked.

"I'll fix it later," the woman answered, "Which reminds me…" Anna walked over to her computer and pulled up the e-mail.

"Got another message this morning," the woman went on, "Tell me what you think." Tsuzuki walked over and read the e-mail for himself.

"Who sent this one?" the Shinigami asked afterwards. The woman shrugged and shook her head.

"Dunno," she said, "No point in replying; might be a fake e-mail address."

"Think it's the same person?" he asked.

"Who can say?" Anna asked, "Should I take the money?"

"I guess," Tsuzuki said, "You will need it after all." Anna looked at him.

"I suppose," she replied, "Maybe I could try and ask the bank who opened the account for me tomorrow." She turned back to the message.

"Hello, my name is Niwa Midori," Anna said in fake cheerful tone, "And my killer is still on the loose."

Meanwhile down the road at a house called Wisteria House, Emiko, Hotaru, and Mike watched Tsuzuki and Anna at her laptop via live feed on Emiko's computer. Hotaru bugged the manor while she excused herself to the bathroom.

"So what's the word, girls?" Mike asked.

"She's really nice," Hotaru said as she sat on her girlfriend's lap.

"But," Emiko spoke up while stroking the Loli Goth's hair, "Anna can't be trusted; she's an Eda-Kimoto after all. They all are cold and cruel under their sweet and sunny façade!" Mike shook his head.

"This isn't the case here," he said.

"How do you mean?" Emiko challenged. The American sat back in the red-painted oak chair.

"Don't ask me how I know," he said, "Usually all of the women in Eda-Kimoto clan have this icy, cold, heartless nature to them. Anna lacks that." Emiko sneered at him.

"Your senses must be getting dull!" she snapped.

"No, it's not that," Mike argued, "She has this warm, soft kindness to her soul. This kind can't be faked. It's the same that Daisuke had." The other two went dead silent in shock. Everyone knew about Daisuke and his struggles very well. He lived and died a pure soul. Mike's statement changed everything now. Emiko shook her head.

"In any case, we need to keep Kimoto Anna under surveillance until she checks out clean," she informed her roommate.

"Fair enough, Mike said with a shrug.

"Thank you," the butch tomboy said. The American rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he mumbled under his breath. Emiko pretended to ignore him. She, Hotaru, and Mike turned back to the screen. Anna and Tsuzuki returned to Daisuke's office from the mailbox outside. Anna had a white envelope in her hands.


	11. There is a Light That Never Goes Out

_Chapter Ten: There is a Light That Never Goes Out:_

_July 6th, 2003._

The photo club went on their annual summer trip and stayed at Clare Ainsworth's dad's beach house on the coast. The club had gone to sleep for the night after a day of hanging out on the pier and the beach. Well, almost everyone did.

Henry lied on top of Anna on her bed and closed in for another heated kiss. He snuck into her room once the lights were out. The junior waited for this for weeks now. The couple dated for close to two years now. Anna and Henry took things slowly in their relationship. The past two years together consisted of small dates, conversation, and tiny displays of affection from time to time. Three months before this trip, Henry and Anna decided to lose their virginities to each other this summer. The club's trip conveniently played into their plans.

Henry smothered Anna in another kiss as his fingers went through her auburn ponytail. Her hands pulled him into a needy embrace as she kissed him back. The girl still wasn't used to having people so close to her, but this was Henry. Maybe this could work out tonight.

Henry slipped his hands under Anna's pajama top. The junior trembled as her boyfriend attempt to push his tongue into her mouth. Henry started to open doors she had kept locked for four years. She saw sex as a way for two people to be nakedly open with one another and let their deepest fears and desires spill into each other's souls. To Anna, she couldn't open herself up to anyone until the right one came into her life. Only Henry matched that description in her almost non-existent love life.

Henry lightly began massaging her breasts under her shirt. Anna got herself to relax for more with each kiss. This was what she wanted after all, wasn't it? Henry moved his hands from under her pajama shier to the hem of it. Anna's heart pounded with a new wave of unease at this sudden gesture. She tried to calm herself back down and enjoy this new direction, but it didn't working. The girl couldn't explain what was happening.

Anna lightly, but firmly pushed Henry off of her. The boy broke off the kiss and stared down at her.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Anna shook her head at him.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I just can't…"

"What do you mean, why not?" her boyfriend asked. Anna looked away in discomfort.

"I just can't…" she said. Henry climbed off of her lied next to her on the bed. Henry respected wishes. The boy looked over at his girlfriend.

"Not now?" he asked. Anna shook her head. Her boyfriend raised an eyebrow at her.

"When?" he asked.

"I don't think ever…" the girl mumbled as she moved out from under her. Henry really didn't understand her.

"What do you mean?" he asked. "Why? Are you in love with someone else?" Anna shook her head and rolled away from him. Henry's heart sank at that response.

"Who is he?" he asked. His girlfriend didn't even know how to answer herself. She doubted that she even knew the answer. Henry turned away, frowning.

"Whatever," he mumbled. The boy dozed off next to her.

Late in the night, Anna woke up and looked next to her. Henry slept with the pillow in his arms. That night, she noticed something for the first time. Anna didn't love Henry anymore. He wasn't a bad guy; the guy practically treated her like a princess. The junior was one of the first people to help her out on a social level through her freshman year of college. He made her laugh and truly loved her with all of his heart. The problem laid with the fact that Anna just didn't really love him in the same way that she two years earlier. She had fallen out of love in the beginning of 2002. The girl only stayed with Henry because she enjoyed his company. Maybe she didn't really love him all along and just didn't want to feel lonely anymore. Now however, what was the point of hanging on?

Anna quietly got up from the bed, walked over to the glass sliding door, and went outside. She stared out at the sea under the moonlit sky. The ocean sounds at midnight relaxed her just like the pool did in high school. Anna slowly shut her eyes and let her mind wander back to Japan, her father, and to a lesser extent, Tsuzuki.

After the beach trip, Anna and Henry broke up before fall semester began. They remained friends and in the same club, however. Sadly, Henry couldn't let go of his feelings for his ex in the end.

_May 18th, 2009._

This latest mess started between the old woman and Muraki.

She found him leaving the hospital in Tokyo after caring for some patients. He had been stalking Tsuzuki lately and didn't like the Shinigami's new little friend. The corrupt doctor saw his object of affection leaving Kimoto Manor a couple of nights ago. Tsuzuki bid Anna good night before he disappeared back to Meifu. Though it looked innocent, Muraki already saw Anna as a potential threat. What better to deal with the competition than to eliminate it?

She couldn't have that! Nothing was going to diminish that joy, not even an obsessed doctor.

Muraki came out to the entry and saw an old woman waiting him. He looked this woman up and down. She looked to be in her seventies in all black. The woman's skin seemed to lack any wrinkles. From the outside, it looked like an angel and a devil staring at each other down. Muraki pushed up his glasses.

"Can I help you?" he asked. The woman smiled at him.

"Ah, doctor!" she said, "So nice to see you again!" Muraki look at her like she was crazy.

"Don't you remember me?" the old woman asked, "You treated my youngest grandson years ago!"

"I'm sorry, but you must have me confused with someone else," he said politely.

"No matter," she brushed off, "You probably treated so many people in your career. They all look the same to you, no?"

"What exactly do you want?" the doctor in white asked.

"Forgive me," she said as regained her composure. "I am called Kimoto Haruka. You got the time?"

"If you insist," the doctor replied.

Haruka and Muraki walked downtown. The doctor eyed his new "friend" closely. He too had heard of the whole Eda-Kimoto clan legacy. He wondered what the matriarch wanted with him.

"Let me not beat around the bush any longer," Haruka addressed, "I have a small request to ask of you."

"Oh?" Muraki asked. "And what would that be?" Haruka froze in her tracks. Muraki paused as she turned around to face him.

"I know what you plan to do with Kimoto Anna," she said in an ice-coated tone. The doctor didn't flinch. He tried to play off this accusation.

"I have no idea what you mean," Muraki said gentleman-like.

"Save it, Muraki-sensei," she cut in, "I know what you really are! We both are the same, you and I." The doctor glared at her. She saw his true colors off the bat.

"As I was saying," Haruka went on, "I know you see Anna as a threat to your quest in possessing Tsuzuki-san."

"What's it to you?" Muraki asked. Haruka smiled at him in a twisted way.

"Just…" she said, "Leave her be. You can do what you want with Tsuzuki-san and the rest, but leave Anna to me." Muraki became angry under his calm demeanor.

"And why should I?" he asked. Haruka held up a pale hand.

"Anna is my granddaughter," she answered. Muraki listened on intrigued.

"Go on," he said, "What about this loved one that I should spare her for?" Haruka tried not laugh at such a question.

"Loved one?" she asked. "Please! No, you misunderstand me here. I want to kill the little bitch. Two weeks ago, I sent my oldest son to do the job. He did, but Tsuzuki-san managed to bring her back to life in some way. I have a good idea of who pushed him into it. Long story short, I'm going to kill her again and you…" She paused before speaking again, "Would just rob me of my joy in killing Anna if you did the job before I had a chance to do it." Haruka finished. Muraki thought about that for a moment.

"You do put up a convincing argument…" he said.

"I can be rather persuasive," she replied with a gracious smile.

"I'll leave the girl alone," he said, smirking.

"Thank you," she replied with a bow, "I do like to keep family business in the family. Good night, doctor." Haruka departed for the night.

The next morning, Tsuzuki came to Kimoto manor and knocked on the door. Shock covered the Shinigami's face. A young man greeted him at the door. He looked about twenty-six years old and pretty nerdy. His brownish-blonde hair looked like a 60's Beatles cut. The man was still dressed in pajamas. The other man squinted at Tsuzuki through his black-framed glasses.

"Yes?" he asked. Tsuzuki blinked as he tried to think about what to make of this.

"Who are you?" he asked. The man narrowed his eyes behind his black-framed glasses.

"I could ask you the same thing," he said. The Shinigami stared on uneasily. This guy looked like one of Anna's Californian friends.

"I'm Tsuzuki Asato," the Shinigami introduced himself. "And you are?"

"Henry!" a woman's voice called from inside the manor. Both boys looked up to see Anna rushing to the front door in pajamas. Tsuzuki didn't like the situation at hand.

"Anna, what's going on?" the Shinigami asked.

"Tsuzuki, this is my ex-boyfriend, Henry Reed," she said upbeat. "Henry, this is Tsuzuki." Both men glared at each other.

"Uh… Anna," Tsuzuki said, "Can I talk to you for a moment inside?"

"Sure," she said. The woman led her guardian inside. Henry watched on with a frown. Anna and Tsuzuki made it into Daisuke's office. The Shinigami looked a little worried.

"What's going on? Why is Henry here?" he asked. Anna smiled and gave him a little shrug.

"He just showed up here, I guess," she replied.

"Showed up here?" he asked, "How did he know you were still alive? How did he find you?"

"Dunno," she said, "He just showed up at my door hours after you left last night. I invited him in, we spent the whole night talking in the kitchen, and he slept in the office with me."

"He slept with you?!" Tsuzuki yelped.

"He slept on the sheets while I slept under the sheets," she reasoned. The Shinigami's stomach turned. Good that they didn't have sex last night, but Anna seemed happy that Henry spent the night. The whole story sent off a red flag.

After checking on her for the morning, Tsuzuki went to his favorite bakery for lunch. As he ate, the Shinigami tired to wrap his mind around Anna and Henry. How did Henry know that Anna was alive again and who told him?

Suddenly, Tsuzuki heard someone screaming. He jerked his head up to see a high school girl outside the bakery cowering in terror at unseen figure. Tsuzuki rushed to window for a better look. A masked man came up to the girl slowly with a running high-powered badly chainsaw in his hands. He looked like a backwoods redneck butcher.

_What the hell?_, Tsuzuki thought. The Shinigami quickly raced outside to the girl and pushed her inside the bakery. Tsuzuki turned back to the chainsaw-welding maniac. He rushed towards Tsuzuki was the chainsaw. The Shinigami got out of the way just in time.

"Aw shit!" he mumbled. "What's with this guy?" The Shinigami had to get the crazy bastard away from these people before he killed an innocent bystander. Tsuzuki looked around and found not many places to deal with this guy. Finally, a narrow alley caught his eye. Tsuzuki pushed past the slasher and raced towards the alley. The big slasher walked after him with the big chainsaw in his hands.

When Tsuzuki got to the alley, he turned around and found that the slasher was gone.

_Huh?_, he thought. _Where did he go?_ Tsuzuki reported today back to the crew when he made it back Ju-Oh-Oh.

"Who else knows about Anna?" Konoe asked.

"There was a man named Kato Iwao," Tsuzuki began, "He was the one who gave me the Hell Stone in the first place." The others looked on in shock.

"What?" Tsuzuki asked, blinking.

"That changes everything…" Konoe mumbled.

"Why? What do you mean?" the older Shinigami asked. However, Watari side-tracked him with his own thoughts.

"You said Henry was her ex-boyfriend, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Tsuzuki said, nodding.

"And the guy with the chainsaw showed up after you talked to Anna-san?" his friend asked.

"Yeah," his friend answered. Watari thought about this as his fellow Shinigami looked on at him.

"What are you getting at?" he asked.

"I think I should come with you and meet Anna myself," he said boldly with a smile. Tsuzuki was about to ask why. However, it became clear to him pretty soon.

"Okay," the oldest Shinigami said, "When?"

"Now!" Watari insisted.

"Now?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Yeah, now!" the scientist pushed.

"Okay…" his friend said. "Let's go, Hisoka!"

"Right," the boy mumbled.

The boys made it to Kimoto manor three o'clock that afternoon. Tsuzuki knocked on the door.

"Coming!" a muzzled voice called. The Shinigami waited outside. Henry sneered at Tsuzuki and his friends when he opened the door.

"Yes?" he asked, trying to sound nice about it.

"Is Anna here?" Tsuzuki asked. The American man rolled his eyes.

"Anna!" he called. "Your friends are here!"

"I'll be right there!" she said. Watari observed the young man as they waited. His theory began to make sense in his mind now that he got a better look at the guy. There was only one piece needed to fit it all together. Anna came to door as if on cue.

"Tsuzuki!" she chirped.

"Hi…" the oldest Shinigami said, "Anna, can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure," she said. The woman's eyes moved to Hisoka and Watari.

"Hi Hisoka and…" she said.

"Watari Yutaka," the scientist introduced himself politely, "I'm a friend of Tsuzuki's."

"Nice to meet you," Anna said, "I'm Kimoto Anna."

"Tsuzuki has told me all about you," Watari added.

"You don't say," Anna said.

"Okay," Henry cut in, "Come in if you're going to come in!"

Tsuzuki and Anna went into the kitchen. Watari watched them from the living. He almost had the answer to the Henry mystery. Anna turned to Tsuzuki with a smile on her face.

"Henry and I are going back to San Diego tomorrow," she announced. That felt like a kick to the nuts for Tsuzuki.

"WHAT?!" he yelped. "Why? For how long?"

"Forever," she said. Tsuzuki shrugged to regain himself.

"B-But what are your father?" the Shinigami asked. Anna froze at that question.

"Papa?" she asked in a trance-like state.

"Yes," Tsuzuki said as he reached out to hold her hand, "You have to find out who killed him." His hand wrapped around hers in a squeeze. He could feel the warmth in her skin when Anna's mind slowly returned to normal. Watari saw that the answer he needed in that very moment.

_Just as I suspected!_, he thought.

"Anna!" a voice called from the living room. She and Tsuzuki looked up to see Henry peeking into the doorway.

"Yes?" Anna asked.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked.

"What is it?" she questioned.

"In private," her ex added with a sharp tone. Right then, Anna returned into the state of a mindless doll.

"Of course," she said in an empty tone. The woman left Tsuzuki's grasp and followed her ex down the hall. The Shinigami felt so cold all of a sudden. He had her back for a brief second then he lost her again. Watari confirmed his thoughts.

"It's just as I thought," the scientist said as they were leaving the manor. "Henry is controlling her mind somehow."

"How?" Tsuzuki asked in desperation.

"He's using some sort of a spell on Anna," Watari explained, "Someone must have told Henry about her and gave him the spell to try and win her back. It's not a complete spell though." Tsuzuki looked at him oddly.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"When you mentioned her father, the spell began to weaken," his friend went on, "The closer Henry is to Anna, the stronger the spell."

"So how do we break the spell?" Hisoka asked.

"I'm still working on that one," Watari replied, grimace.

At the manor, Anna sat on her futon in Daisuke's office. Henry paced around the room.

"What's wrong, Henry?" she asked. The man turned to her.

"Do you remember when we first tried to sex?" he asked.

"Yes, why?" Anna asked. Henry sat close to her and lightly took her by the hand.

"I have been thinking," he went on, "Could we start over again?" Anna looked at him with big eyes of shock.

"What?" she asked. Henry paused as he fidgeted.

"I know it's sudden," he said, "Just… take some time to think about it, okay?" Anna nodded without thinking.

"Okay, sure," she said. Henry smiled brightly.

"Great, Anna!" he said, "I'll be a good boyfriend for you." The young man kissed her on the forehead. Then he left the room with Anna watching after him in silence. This didn't feel right to her.

Tsuzuki sat in the café alone close to sundown, thinking about the situation at hand. Watari and Hisoka went to do research on this spell Henry had Anna under. Tsuzuki had problems with not only the spell, but with Anna leaving for San Diego. She could become white ash there without ever knowing what happened to Daisuke. He couldn't let that happen.

Right then, Tsuzuki noticed someone sitting next to him again. He looked up and saw, who else? Kato Iwao lowered his newspaper. The Shinigami rolled his eyes.

"Oh Tsuzuki," his "friend" said, "We meet again!" The other man glared at him. Kato frowned at him.

"Not in talking mood, huh?" he asked, "Alright." The older man looked at the menu for a minute.

"What the hell have you done to Anna?" Tsuzuki hissed. The older man looked up at him.

"Sorry?" he replied.

"Cut the crap, Kato!" the Shinigami barked. The older man's face changed.

"That bad?" he asked. Tsuzuki became confused. Clearly, he had no idea what was going on either. Kato raised an eyebrow at him.

"What's going on? What's wrong with Malchik?" he asked.

"Malchik?" the Shinigami questioned.

"It's an old nickname for Anna-chan," Kato explained, "Now tell me what's wrong." Tsuzuki had a few reservations. He still couldn't trust this guy. However, this had become an emergency now. Tsuzuki told him all about Henry, the spell, and Slasher guy-san. The older man listened on the whole time.

"Does this Henry guy have any past experience with spells?" he asked.

"I doubt it…" Tsuzuki answered uneasily.

"Interesting…" Kato mumbled in deep thought.

"What is?" the Shinigami asked. The old man looked up at him.

"Henry may have control of her mind, but he doesn't have control of a key thing in a relationship," he said. Tsuzuki thought about his words. The answer slapped him hard in the face.

"Her heart!" Tsuzuki gasped.

"Yes," the old man whispered.

"And what about the man with the chainsaw?" the Shinigami asked.

"The chainsaw man is Henry's psyche," Kato answered, smiling, "It manifests after you talk to Malchik, right?"

"Yes," Tsuzuki replied.

"The chainsaw man represents his jealousy, anger, and insecurity. Basically, Henry sees you as a threat," the old man answered.

"Okay," Tsuzuki said. "So how so I rescue Anna?" Kato set aside his paper.

"I think your friends have that answer already," he replied. Right then, Tsuzuki's cell phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Tsuzuki!" Hisoka said on the other line.

"Hisoka! What have you found?" he asked.

"Watari and I have found how to break the spell," the boy said.

"Okay, how?" the older Shinigami asked.

"We need to get Anna away from Henry and tell Henry the truth," the boy answered.

"I'm on it!" Tsuzuki said. He rushed right out of the café. Kato watched after him stoic.

_Hurry to Malchik!_, he thought. As a distraction, the old man texted Anna about a clue about Daisuke.

Tsuzuki made it back to Kimoto manor. He found Hisoka and Watari standing on the front lawn waiting. They walked to the front door and knocked on it.

"Coming," a voice mumbled. Henry slid open the door. He rolled his eyes at the Shinigami.

"Now what do you want?" he groaned. "Anna's not here; she took off earlier."

"Actually, we came to see you," Tsuzuki spoke up. Henry looked at him confused.

"Me? What for?" he asked.

"Can we come in?" Hisoka asked.

"S-Sure," Henry stammered. The boys followed him into the living room. The Shinigami sat on the sofa as Henry looked like a prisoner about to be sentenced. He swallowed without looking up.

"We know about the spell you're using on Anna," Tsuzuki told him. The young man went ghost pale.

"You don't understand," he protested, "I love Anna! I haven't stopped loving her all of these! Even after we broke up in college, I still loved her! When I heard that she died, I thought I had lost her forever. But now… now, I have a chance to start again! I will make her love me!"

"That's the thing…" Watari began. "Anna won't really love you. You can try all you want, but it'll all be in vain." It took a moment for it all to sink into Henry.

"You mean…" he started.

"Yes!" the Shinigami all said. A crushing blow that one was and it showed on Henry's face too.

"Damn it!" he cursed aloud, "Why do I always screw up everything in my life?!" The shadow under him started to form waves and peaks. The Shinigami knew that had to act fact before this all got out of hand.

"Hey, it can't be that bad…" Tsuzuki said, trying to keep him calm.

"I am a disappointment to my dad!" the American yelled. The peaks and waves started bubbling in the shadow.

"An easy fix," Watari said. Henry clenched his fists asked his sides.

"Every girl I dated dumped me for a better man or woman!" the young man ranted. The shadow increased in its height on the floor.

"It happens," Hisoka brushed off. Yet, the first storm had yet to deliver the worst of it.

"I EVEN MADE A PASS AT MY STEP-MOTHER!" Henry yelled.

"Oh," the Shinigami said. "That's bad!" Right then, chainsaw man showed up out of Henry's mind from the shadow on the ground. The Shinigami leapt up to battle. Henry turned around and fell to the ground.

"What is that thing?!" he yelped as he struggled to crawl away.

"It's your insecurity!" Hisoka yelled.

"What?" the man asked.

"This monster shows up when you doubt yourself!" Watari yelled. Henry felt like puking as he saw his error. Tsuzuki pulled out his fuda.

"By the name of the Ju-Oh-Cho, you shall be judged!" he yelled at the chainsaw maniac. The man ran forward with the chainsaw. When the bastard got close enough, Tsuzuki placed the fuda over the monster's chest. The monster screamed out as the paper burned right through. He slowly burned away into ash—chainsaw and all. Once it was gone, Henry crawled out of hiding.

"Is it over?" he asked in a trembling voice. Tsuzuki, Hisoka, and Watari knew otherwise. The Shinigami had only one guess as to who was pulling the strings in this misadventure. Tsuzuki turned and left to confront the culprit.

Tsuzuki went out to the Moonlit Blossom bar close to midnight. This was where he kept encountering Muraki as of late. If he was right, the doctor was the one who gave Henry the spell to control Anna. Tsuzuki waited at the bar for Muraki.

Tsuzuki glared at Muraki as he entered the bar. The sadistic bastard looked around for his prey. When he spotted the Shinigami, Muraki made his way over to the bar. He sat down next to Tsuzuki.

"Ah, Tsuzuki-san," he exclaimed, "So nice to see you again." Tsuzuki didn't look at him.

"I know what you did to Henry," he hissed. Muraki tried to play off the allegation.

"Why Tsuzuki-san!" he exclaimed. "I have no idea what you are accusing me of!"

"Cut the crap, Muraki!" the Shinigami snapped as he whipped around to his stalker. "Why did you do it?" Muraki smirked at him.

"That girl stands in the way of the bond between us," he simply explained. Tsuzuki glared at him cross.

"And what's that supposed to mean?!" he barked. Muraki gently-mockingly took him by the hand.

"I refused to share you with anyone else," he said in a pandering tone, "That woman is a burden to me. That's where Henry became useful.

"I met her ex in this very bar. Intriguing man, he was. I wondered what an American man was doing in a bisexual bar like this. So, I walked over to him and introduced myself. He said that he wanted to be left alone. I noticed that Henry looked a bit depressed, so I asked him what was wrong. He told me all about his ex, how she died, why he came with their friends to find out the truth, and how he would give anything to have her back. This gave me a little idea.

"I offered to reunite him with his ex. Henry didn't believe me at first, but I can be very persuasive. I gave Henry the spell to control Anna's mind. However, I knew you and your little friends would try to rescue Anna. To keep that from happening, I gave the pool fool's insecurity a physical form. I didn't really expect it take form into Leatherface from _The Texas Chainsaw Massacre_ from his memories."

"At what price?" Tsuzuki snapped.

"His soul," Muraki said calmly.

"WHAT?!" the Shinigami yelled. The doctor gave him little shrug.

"Henry said that he would even sell his soul to have Anna back," he went on, "Be glad I didn't kill her like I originally planned." Tsuzuki raised an eyebrow at him.

"And why is that?" he hissed.

"Her grandmother asked me not to," Muraki answered demonic-like. Tsuzuki's eyes grew wide in shock.

"Kimoto-san found me outside of the hospital," the doctor went on, "We took a little walk. She asked me not to lay a single finger on Anna. Haruka wanted the thrill of killed her granddaughter herself." Tsuzuki went pale with shock. The sick-minded doctor smirked at his prey.

"You amuse me so, Tsuzuki-san," he said, "I'll let Reed-san go because of that. Sadly, I can't guarantee that I'll keep my promise to Kimoto-san or that she won't come after her granddaughter again." Muraki lightly kissed Tsuzuki on the cheek.

"Good night," he whispered. The doctor turned and left. Tsuzuki sat there with a blank face for a moment. When he came back to earth, anger slowly crept in. This case got even more difficult. Not only did he have to worry with the Hell Stone, Kimoto-san, Muraki, and the Kimoto case just made it all heavier.

The next morning, Anna and the Shinigami saw Henry off to Tokyo Airport.

"Thanks, guys," he said to the boys, "You really helped me get over my depression."

"It was nothing!" Tsuzuki cheered.

"Take care of yourself on your way back to San Diego," Hisoka added.

"Sure will," Henry said with a nod, "I already told my friends here that I was going home." Then, he turned to Anna. A confused look came onto the man's face.

"You look like a girlfriend I used to have," he informed her. "Can't remember her name though, but you both look so sad." Even though it hurt, Anna didn't show it. Once everything had settled down, Tsuzuki told Anna everything about yesterday. Horrified for her friend's sake, she made a simple yet painful request.

"Erase all of Henry's memories of me!" Anna pleaded. Tsuzuki had reservations about that.

"You sure you want to do that?" he asked. Anna looked up at him nearly pleading.

"Tsuzuki please," she pleaded, "I can't have him make the same mistake again. I've known him for many years. He still hasn't gotten over me and he'll do anything to have me back!" Anna looked down at her feet.

"It would just be better if I never existed to him at all," she mumbled. Tsuzuki was touched by her logic. He reluctantly agreed to erase Henry's memories of her. So here Anna and Henry were, strangers once more.

"Thanks, I guess…" she mumbled. Henry smiled again.

"Anyway, thanks guys!" he said. Then, the man turned and left.

"You okay?" Tsuzuki asked Anna softly.

"Yeah," she lied. That afternoon, Anna went home and ripped off all of the pictures of her and Henry out of her timeline. She tore them up and threw them away. After rearranging the timeline, Anna sat down on the floor and broke down crying. She had lost just a dear friend and another piece of her past all in one day.

On the plane back to San Diego, Henry looked at a photo album of his college days. He came across a picture of that old photo club during that beach trip in 2003. He and the girls looked so happy together. Then, he saw Anna standing next to him in the photo, smiling and holding his hand. Henry noticed a middle-aged Japanese businessman looking on with him.

"Who is that girl next to you?" he asked as he pointed to Anna. Henry shrugged as he shook his head.

"I don't know," he said in his best Japanese. They looked on at the picture.

"She's pretty though," the man said.

"Yeah," Henry agreed. "But she looks so sad in her eyes…" His voice trailed off. He began to think of his favorite Smiths' song, "There is a Light That Never Goes Out," as he looked on at the photo. He knew that was true, somehow…


	12. Locked Power

_Chapter Eleven: Locked Power:_

_October 7th, 1988._

Ever since Anna was conceived, Daisuke worried about her powers. Despite running away from home, the Eda-Kimoto name still haunted him. He feared his daughter for a long time. It had been forty generations already. He worried about what powers his five-year-old daughter would have. The man worried that her powers would manifest too soon. He got his second answer that afternoon. Anna rushed into Kato's living room excited.

"Daddy!" she exclaimed as she ran towards Daisuke with open arms. The twenty-three year old man embraced his little girl.

"Sweetheart!" he said, "How was your day?" Little Anna looked up at him smiling with those little green-brown eyes of hers.

"I got many kitties to come to school today!" she announced proudly. Daisuke froze and looked at her.

"What did you say?" he asked.

"I saw a kitty lying dead in the bushes near the playground today," she went on, "He made me feel so sad. I wished that he was alive again. Suddenly, the kitty got up and walked away. Then, I looked up and saw many kitties watching me. All of the kids liked the kitties, but the teachers looked at me funny all day." Daisuke's stomach turned. In his bloodline, a kitsune handler's power manifests through one simple wish. Anna's powers must have manifested this afternoon with the cats coming back to life in the city. However, something was off here. Most of the ages for powers to manifest ranged from twelve to seventeen. Anna was only five years old. His daughter was part of the fortieth generation of the third wave.

While Anna did her homework in the living room, Daisuke and Kato talked on the porch.

"They have manifested," Daisuke said to the older man. Kato looked at him surprised.

"Already?" he asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, which means…" the younger man began to say. Both men went silent at the thought of what could come next.

"So what are you going to do?" Kato asked. Daisuke turned to him with a dead serious look in his eyes.

"I have no choice…" he mumbled.

"You mean…" Kato began.

"I have no choice," the younger man said, "I'll wait until after dinner though."

"Will it hurt?" Kato asked concerned.

"No, no," Daisuke said, "A sealing spell is completely painless and she won't know what's going on because it is so quick." The older man relaxed after hearing that.

"That's good to know," he said. Dinner went as planned. All three sat at the table eating. When he finished his rice, Daisuke lowered his chopsticks and looked at his little angel.

"Anna-chan," the young man said, "How would you like to play a little game?" His little darling's eyes lit up in surprised delight.

"A game?" she asked. Her father tried to remain cheerful and upbeat about the whole scheme.

"Sure," he said, "Come with me." Daisuke stood to his feet and walked out the front door. The child followed behind curious with Kato watching in silence.

Father and daughter came out into the woods. Daisuke looked behind him every few steps. Anna stayed close behind him the whole time. He couldn't let her know what was going on; that would probably frighten the child off.

Father and child came into the center of the woods. A circle of white chalk waited for them. Anna looked up at her father rather confused.

"What is this, daddy?" she asked. Daisuke turned around and knelt down to his little princess.

"It's okay, honey," he said softly. "This is part of the game." Anna looked on uncertain. Daisuke gave her a little smile and gently patted her on the head.

"It'll be fine," the father promised. The little girl began to believe him as she said nothing. Daisuke kissed her on the forehead.

"That's a good girl," he whispered. The man rose to his feet. "Now step into the circle," Daisuke calmly instructed her. The little girl walked into the circle and turned to face him.

"Good, good," Daisuke muttered, "Now close your eyes and hold out your hand." Anna hesitated at first. The man sensed her nervousness and fear.

"It's okay sweetie," he insisted, "Everything will be fine!" The little girl didn't move at first. Then she shut her eyes and held out her hand.

"That's good," Daisuke mumbled. His fingertips lightly touched her on the forehead. He shut his own eyes and began to chant the spell. A small vibration shook through the child. She could feel it started from her chest and spread through her tiny body. She wasn't sure what was going on. Daisuke used up all of his energy and might for his sealing spell on his little girl. When he felt himself starting to give out, the man opened his eyes and removed his hand. He placed a piece of Botan Rice candy in her hand.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now," the man said. Anna complied and looked in her hand. Her little face lit up when she saw the candy.

"Thanks, daddy!" she cheered. Daisuke gave her a little smile.

"You're welcome," he said.

_May 19th, 2009._

Tsuzuki knocked on Anna's front door the afternoon. Rihoko answered it and saw him, Hisoka, and Watari looking in. The young mother perked up.

"Hey guys," she said, "Anna-san's in her room on the computer. I'm heading off to school and Yoko-chan's starting summer cram school. So make yourselves at home." She paused as her mood changed.

"Though, I must warn you," she whispered, "Anna's not been in the best of moods since this morning. She hasn't even come out of her room to get her lunch that my daughter made." The Shinigami didn't have to ask for the reason.

"Alright," Watari replied with a smile to turn the mood around. Rihoko bowed and turned inside the house.

"Come on, Yoko-chan!" she yelled. "We've got to go! Get a move on!"

"Yes, mama!" the little girl replied. Yoko-chan rushed over to her mother with her little pink Hello Kitty backpack. She nearly fell over due to the bag's weight. Rihoko had to hold her up. The mom turned to the Shinigami.

"Bye, guys," she said.

"Bye," the boys replied. Mother and daughter departed for the day.

"Come on, Yoko-chan," she said softly as the Shinigami watched them leave. They turned back to each other. There was just something they had to see about Anna. Tsuzuki made it down the hall to Daisuke's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in," a soft muzzled voice spoke. Tsuzuki slid open the door. Anna sat at the computer typing away. She had been there for quite a few hours as Rihoko told the boys in the hall. The Shinigami slowly approached her from behind. The woman froze and looked up. The sight of her sight tugged at Tsuzuki's heart. Anna looked like she had been crying over Henry all morning. He decided that he best not to talk about him. Tsuzuki looked over at the timeline. He noticed that the pictures of Anna and Henry were taken down. The whole timeline had been rearranged as if the couple never existed. The Shinigami looked back over at her.

"Some of your pictures are gone," he pointed out.

"Yes," Anna said, not looking up from the screen. The Shinigami dropped it from there.

"You okay?" he asked. The woman clicked on a link about the Swedish judicial system.

"Yeah," she lied, "Never been better!" Tsuzuki knew that wasn't true. He knew because he felt pain of his own every single day. Maybe he saw a bit of himself in Anna.

"Did you just come here to ask that?" Anna asked cold and distant. Tsuzuki came back to earth after she spoke.

"Wha? No, no!" he said, waving his hand back and forth. "Watari, Hisoka, and I had to see you about something." Anna's face changed from worn out to rather confused.

"What for?" she asked.

"There's something we have to check out," the Shinigami told her.

"What is it?" Anna questioned.

"Come outside with me," the man said. He left the office with Anna looking after him. This all felt so familiar, yet she was interested though. The woman got up and left the room to follow her guardian.

They came out into the backyard and found Watari and Hisoka already waiting for them. Anna noticed a laptop sitting out open on the ground with some pricey machinery attached to it. She became even more curious as it all reminded her of the night. Tsuzuki turned to her.

"Anna," he said, "We just have to know about your powers."

"What are you talking about?" the woman asked, blinking. Hisoka stared dead on at her.

"You are familiar with your family history, aren't you?" he asked.

"Vaguely," Anna replied. "I have heard the stories growing up. I asked papa about them once, but he refused to tell me anything. Days before he died however, he briefly told me that we were kitsune handlers. I thought he was joking at first, but he drilled into my mind that it was true." The Shinigami relaxed after hearing this. Good, she wasn't completely in the dark.

"Good to know," Watari said, "Saves time from explaining everything."

"But why are we out here?" Anna asked. Tsuzuki braved himself for this part.

"We want to see where you stand with your kitsune and powers," he answered.

"Alright," the woman said, "What do you need me to do?"

"Just step into the center," Tsuzuki told her, "Watari is going to scan you." Anna looked over at the other two Shinigami. She still wasn't sure about this.

"Okay," she said. Anna stepped into the center. She turned to her waiting audience. This was just like the "game" she and Daisuke played all those years ago. Watari got on his laptop and got to work. Amazingly, it only took five minutes to scan Anna's power.

"I've got it!" Watari announced. Anna looked up confused.

"Already?" she asked.

"What do you have?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Take a look," he said. Everyone crowded around the scientist. A round red beating circle sat in the middle of a cool white background.

"What is that?" Anna asked.

"Your kitsune," Watari explained, "As you can see here, it is very awake at the moment."

"Can you tell us how strong it is?" Tsuzuki asked. His friend shook his head.

"Unfortunately, I can't seem to get a full report," he said, "Her power is locked up tight."

"Can't you unlock them?" Hisoka asked.

"That's the thing," he replied, "The only one who can unlock Anna's kitsune died ten years ago."

"Daisuke," the other two Shinigami said together. Watari nodded.

"Exactly," he said, "But look at this!" He clicked on a spot that was in the center-right and blew it up. The detail grew magnified 100x.

"See," he said. Everyone watched as he moved the mouse to the details.

"Are those… cracks?" Hisoka asked.

"Yeah," Watari said.

"What does that mean?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Her kitsune is trying to break through the sealing spell," the scientist said, "Its power is trying to grow, but Daisuke's spell is preventing it from doing so."

"When will the shield break?" Tsuzuki asked. Watari shrugged.

"It's hard to say," he said, "It could break at any time." They all looked at the scan. They now had a time bomb to deal with along with increasing damage.

"Locked powers, huh?" Emiko asked as she watched the crew on the monitor, "Things just got a whole hell lot more exciting!"

"So what happens now?" Hotaru asked as she sat in her lap in their living room. Her girlfriend smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"Well dearest," the butch lesbian said, "We keep watching and move in when the occasion rises." Hotaru giggled and nibbled her girlfriend on the ear.

"Can't wait!" she chirped. Her lover caressed her leg. They shared another afternoon kiss together. Everything made for a good prelude to the piling storm Kimoto Haruka was releasing from Pandora's corrupt bloody box.


	13. Seita

_Chapter Twelve: Seita:_

_February 15th, 2005._

The boy sat on the darkened living room in the early hours of the morning. Bruised left cheek bone, cut on the lower lip, and two black eyes were his only Valentine's Day present last night. No thanks to his mom's boyfriend, of course. He seemed to hate that kid. Why? The boy narrowed it down to either jealousy or something to do. He couldn't really tell, however. Did the boy's mother care? The mom was too dunk or high to even notice that she had a son. This was evident when she asked him who he was every morning. The boy grew to accept this loveless home life for four years.

Last night did it for him though. The boyfriend went overkill on him. Poor kid never stood a chance. Lip and beat down, as usual. Only, something changed that night. Four years of sorrow caved way to rage for the beaten boy. Why was he the punching bag for this douche bag's drunken fury?

The boy leapt forward and bit the boyfriend on the thigh as a starter. He managed to push the man down on the ground with all of his might. The man hit the computer desk and crashed to the floor with a thud. He looked up to see the boy itching to attack again. He even had his little fists up to fight. The boyfriend gave a mocking laugh.

"Is that the best you can do?" he asked. The boy saw fire as he leapt forward to attack again. Too bad the boyfriend had the upper hand. As the child leapt forward to tackle him, the man kicked him to the wall. The boy crashed backwards with a thud, knocking the wind out of his lungs. The boyfriend walked up to the kid, growling at him.

"Now I'll show you what a real man can do!" he barked. By the child looked up, the man was cracking his knuckles for round two. Under a minute, the kid was knocked out cold with all of his new injuries along with the older ones. The boyfriend stood over the victim smirking as he spat out blood from his mouth that the boy had managed to cause him from pushing him down to the hard tatami mats.

"Stupid kid!" he muttered, "Just as pathetic as that bitch." The man walked away snorting. Last night's beating led to the boy's two am decision. He couldn't take living in this loveless Hell anymore. So, the boy packed up his things and ran away from home.

_May 19th, 2009._

The Shinigami left again and Anna was alone once more. Only this time, she felt better.

_I am a kitsune handler,_ she thought as she went into the manor. The woman knew, but she hadn't thought much about it. But now, the whole Eda-Kimoto had struck her interests. They had baited her mind like a fish to a worm on a hook. She needed to learn more about her family. Right now, she hadn't known a bed since last night. It hadn't hit her until now. Anna dragged herself to Daisuke's office for a little sleep. Once there, she collapsed onto the futon and took a nap.

Around 5:45, Anna awoke to someone opening the front door. At first, she was a out of it.

_Rihoko's back already?_, she thought. The woman got up and wandered down the hall. Anna began to realize the situation when she found that the manor was still dark. Okay, so who was here with her?

Anna kept quiet and peeked into the living room. A figure was stuffed small electronics in his backpack. The woman studied him as she tried to form a plan in her head. This intruder looked like Hisoka's physical age. Due to the lack of light, she could only see his back as he was swiping the small valuables and electronics. The alarm went off in Anna's mind.

She crept into the living room and felt along for something hard for defense. She happened to find one of Rihoko's unused textbooks in the bookcase. The woman braced herself to attack and move forward. The thief was about to leave with the loot when he noticed someone standing right behind him. He quickly whipped around.

"What the…" he began to yelp. CRASH! He went down for the count at Anna's feet. When he came to, the boy had a throbbing headache.

"What the hell…" he mumbled. The boy found that he couldn't move. He quickly looked down to see that packing cords had him strapped down to the chair.

"Damn it," he mumbled to himself. "How the hell did this happen?" It was then the boy noticed that the lights were brightly on in the living room.

"Oh…" the boy mumbled. Having the feeling that someone was watching him, he looked ahead of him. Anna sat in front of him watching, tapping her cheek with her fingers. The boy growled and glared at her.

"What the fuck did you do to me?!" he roared as he tried to break free of his bindings.

"I just knocked you out and bound you down so that you couldn't leave," Anna explained ever so calmly. Her captive sneered at her.

"You bitch! Let me go now!" the boy snapped.

"Uh-uh," Anna replied. The boy snorted at the woman. Then, he broke into a smirk as he tried to hold back his laughter.

"Aw, what you're going to hold me here until the police come?" he asked rather boldly. "I ain't scared of jail! I'm already in the system! In fact, I just got out of juvi!" Anna shook her head at him.

"Nope," she admitted. The boy blinked at her rather confused now.

"You're not going to kill me, are you?" he asked.

"No," the woman answered.

"Then… what are you going to do with me?" her captive asked. Anna didn't answer as she studied him for a minute. The psychology minor degree got right to work in her head. The boy glared at her as he narrowed his eyes.

"What the fuck are you staring at?!" he barked.

"I sense some bitterness," Anna said as she was a professional therapist at work.

"You think?" the thief snapped. The woman leaned in closer to his face.

"What's the problem?" she asked.

"You're holding me here against my will or are you blind?" her captive asked with gall in his voice. Anna shook her head.

"It's more than that," she said. The boy glared on at her.

"Look, I'll give the stuff back. Just let me go," he offered.

"Shhh! I'm working here," his captor said as she tried to piece him together in her mind. The boy sighed annoyed as he tried to work the cords off of his body. What was with this woman? What was she plotting here? Anna narrowed her eyes rather puzzled.

"Shouldn't you be doing some homework or a school club activity?" she asked. The boy snorted again.

"No! I skipped school for the whole day!" he barked.

"Do your parents know where you are?" Anna quizzed him. The boy all but laughed at her. This response caught her interest.

"Home troubles, huh?" she suggested.

"Not anymore…" the boy mumbled.

"Huh?" Anna asked. The boy glared on at her.

"My mom is a drunk and high slut who can't remember that I'm her son. Her boyfriend is an abusive piece of shit who made me his personal punching bag! I took it every day until tried to fight back and I ran away from home four years ago!"

"Pity," the woman replied with no expression on her face.

"Look, can you let me go now, lady? What more do you want from me?" her captive asked. Anna couldn't wrap her head around it. He didn't fit the part of her killer. This was just a normal kid who was trying to rod the manor with bad timing. Still, he needed to be kept under close watch until confirmed innocent.

"What's your name, kid?" she asked.

"Seita!" the boy hissed.

"Seita, what?" Anna asked.

"Tojo Seita! Now can you let me go?" her captive asked. Anna smiled at him kindly.

"Nice to meet you, Seita. I'm Kimoto Anna," she replied. The boy was surprised, but didn't show it. Suddenly, the front door slid open.

"We're home!" Rihoko called as she and her daughter walked inside. They came across the "ghost" and the thief in the living room. The mother blinked at the scene before her.

"Anna-san," Rihoko said, "Who is this? What's going on here?" The "ghost" stood up smiling.

"My buddy, Seita, here is staying here for dinner!" she announced. She turned to her hostage.

"Tojo Seita," Anna said, "These are my friends, Tanaka Rihoko and her cute little daughter, Yoko-chan."

"Hi," the girls said.

"Hi," the boy mumbled, still annoyed by all of this. Anna clapped her hand together smiling.

"Great!" she said, "Let's have dinner, shall we?" Everyone nodded uncertain this whole idea.

"Good," Anna said. She turned her attention to the captive. "Seita, could you be a dear and help Yoko-chan prepare dinner?" The boy rolled his eyes.

"Like I have a choice," he mumbled under his breath.

"Sorry?" the "ghost" questioned with a sharp tone, pretending not to hear him.

"Sure," Seita tried again fake-happy, "I'd be happy to help!"

"Good boy!" Anna repeated as she patted him on the head. She freed him from his bindings and helped the boy to his feet. The "ghost" nudged the hostage to the little girl. Both walked into the kitchen with Anna watching sternly. That is how Tojo Seita came to live at Kimoto Manor, against his will in the beginning anyway.


	14. Lady Devils

_Chapter Thirteen: Lady Devils:_

January 3rd, 1987.

She had plotted this for years now. The "innocents" in Hell, as she called them, had suffered too long. Homosexuals, suicide victims, benign non-Christian worshippers, people who fell in love with the wrong people, and the non-baptized didn't deserve to be in Hell in her eyes. They only ended up there through the corruption of the judgment system. Certain souls were put in Hell through the bribery of the living in Chijou. Plus, Lucifer was a douche bag, all the more reason to start a revolution in Hell. It would be rough, but she made a promise before she came back to Hell.

She looked around at her troops. All of the innocents were here, now to begin the revolt.

"My brothers and sisters!" she announced, "Today is the day we fight for our freedom and overthrow that evil bastards holding us hostage here! We shall never back down! Give it your all and remember why we are fighting today!"

"Yeah!" the innocents yelled.

"Fight!" she screamed.

"Yeah!" they yelled. At sundown, the blood-soaked revolution began with an ambush. The innocents cornered their corrupt captors on all sides. Too bad it didn't play in their favor. Lucifer and his forces overpowered the innocents. She and her three other top officers were exiled to the Chijou. Some of the innocent army was executed while the others hid in fear.

Despite the blood-filled disaster on her hands, she is _still_ plotting for a revolt in Hell, even when living among the humans.

_May 20th, 2009._

Anna and Tsuzuki went downtown early the next morning. The woman needed a few things; she even had a list armed with her. Tsuzuki came along to keep watch over her.

"So why can't you use Rihoko's things along with the things you brought with you to Japan?" he asked out curiosity.

"I'm running low on things in my backpack," Anna reasoned, "I don't want to feel like I'm using Rihoko and her daughter anymore than I already am. So I have to get a few things I need for myself. Besides, Rihoko's breasts are at least an E-cup and so her bras and shirts wouldn't fit me anyway."

"Good point," Tsuzuki said, "So what do you need?" Anna looked at her list.

"Clothes, soap, towels, sheets, meds, diffusers, printer paper, face wash, tea, toiletries, and a gift for Seita," she read to him.

"Seita?" the Shinigami asked.

"The thief that tried to rob the manor last night," she said.

"You still have him there?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Yeah," his female companion replied.

"Why?" her guardian asked with a puzzled look on his face. Anna shrugged at him.

"Felt like it. I have observed him; he's just a kid who lost his way. So he's my little project to help reform him while I still have time," she said.

"How?" the Shinigami asked.

"Showing him love and care," the woman replied, "Judging by what told me, Seita has never really known love. I'm going to give it to him and I won't quit on him either. I'm going to keep trying until I get through!"

"Can you even trust him?" Tsuzuki asked, "How can you be sure he won't run off?"

"I asked Yoko-chan to keep watch over my little pal while we were out and Rihoko was studying for an exam. Plus…" Anna answered. She reached into the shoulder bag she borrowed from the Todai student and pulled out Seita's muddy sneakers. The Shinigami looked stunned.

"You took his shoes?" he asked.

"Yep," Anna said, "Can't get far without these, now can he? Plus, he can't phone the police and tell them what's going on without incriminating himself."

"You've thought this through, haven't you?" the Shinigami asked. He gal pal nodded.

"Have to for my project," she said. Tsuzuki nodded. Anna was proving to be a complex woman. She made him want to learn more about her feverishly.

The shopping began and Anna got what she needed almost immediately. She used that name Niwa Midori to make the purchases on her new card. Tsuzuki watched Anna operate. She told him how she would run this whole thing today.

"I worked out how to use the whole Niwa Midori thing," the woman explained as they came to the first store, "I gave her a little back-story. Midori is twenty-six. She graduated from Todai in 2004 with a Communications major and a Psychology minor. She worked for a small interpreter company, Heiwa, but due to the poor economy, it went under. Midori is also single and lives alone."

"How is that?" she asked. The Shinigami blinked for a moment.

"Wow!" he said. Anna smiled and nodded.

"Took me a while, but I can do it," she said confidentially, "It's like role-playing if you think about it." Clever woman, this Kimoto Anna was. She put on a show worthy of an Oscar for her part as Niwa Midori. Because of this, shopping went by rather nicely for them both.

"Want lunch?" Anna asked Tsuzuki when they were finished, "My treat." The Shinigami's had stars in his eyes.

"Really, you mean it?" he asked.

"You've been so good and not complaining today," she told him, "Any place of your choice." Tsuzuki grinned as he liked the sound of that one. They went to a small burger place as his choice. Anna paid for lunch as promised. Tsuzuki nearly forget that his was working today as he munched on his burger and fries. Anna watched him with a smile on her face.

"You really like to eat, don't you?" she asked. The Shinigami glanced up at her while chewing on a teriyaki burger.

"What?" he asked. Anna shook her head at him.

"It's nothing," she brushed off.

A few tables over, Emiko, Hotaru, and Mike sat spying on the pair. Emiko had the idea to go out today while Hotaru and Mike were just happy to get out of the house. The trio had been following them all day. They took notes of Tsuzuki and Anna's every move.

"Anything yet?" Mike whispered.

"Nope," Emiko said. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Hotaru asked.

"That's what it's been for the past week," Mike complained, "Nothing. I say we drop this surveillance now. We aren't going to get anything by this point."

"Can't," Emiko argued.

"And why not?" the man snapped.

"I'm still not satisfied on trusting her yet," the leader hissed.

"Oh like your revolution in Hell?" he hissed. Emiko glared and hit him in the face with ringed hand. The American man howled in pain.

"Bitch!" Mike hissed as he rubbed his cheek. Hotaru looked out at Tsuzuki and Anna. Her face went pale as a result.

"Guys," she whimpered, "They see us!" The other two froze and looked up. Tsuzuki glared at the trio as he tapped Anna on the shoulder. She turned and saw them as well. She even whispered something in the Shinigami's ear. The trio got nervous as they tried to figure out what to do next.

"What now, Brilliance-san?" Mike asked. Emiko smirked at the odds against her.

"Expose ourselves," she said. The other two turned to her with jaws dropped.

"What?!" they asked. Emiko put up her hands in a shrug.

"Not too much, though," she went on, "We won't tell them about the surveillance part" Tsuzuki and Anna started walking over to them after she said that.

"They're coming this way!" Hotaru exclaimed. Emiko straightened up in her chair.

"Just act normal," she commanded. The pair approached the trio at their table. Emiko looked up with a sharp gleam in her eyes.

"Oh, hi guys," she said, smiling.

"Have you been following us all of this time?" Tsuzuki asked bluntly. Emiko smirked.

"Yes, we have," she announced. Okay, Tsuzuki hadn't expected this; maybe a lie or two, but not the blunt truth.

"Why?" Anna asked. Emiko grinned fox-like at her a gleam appeared in her eye.

"Not here," she said in a low voice, "Follow us." Emiko got up from the table and began to leave with Hotaru and Mike following behind. Tsuzuki and Anna looked at each other, uncertain.

"Should we trust them?" Anna asked, "They could be plotting something after all." The Shinigami himself didn't really know how to answer.

"Do we have any other choice to find out, right now?" he asked. The woman shook her head.

"Guess not," she said. They followed behind the trio with their guard up. The five of them came across the street to a local park. Emiko and her roommates stopped near the restrooms.

"Well?" Anna asked. Emiko's face reminded her of a hungry fox.

"Well guys," she said. "Should we them or tell them?" The other two grinned at them.

"Show them and then tell them," Mike answered.

"Oh yeah," Hotaru agreed. Tsuzuki moved in front of Anna to protect her. The trio shut their eyes and began chanting. A heavy wind blew all around all five of them. A glowing, black fire surrounded Emiko, Hotaru, and Mike. The woman and the Shinigami shielded their eyes from the intensity. Emiko's teeth flashed into razor sharp fangs as she grinned at them in the fire.

"Why are you looking away?" she asked, "You wanted to know the truth and now here it is!" The flames jumped up to the tops of the trees and flared out into their surroundings.

In thirty seconds, everything settled down. Tsuzuki and Anna looked on in shock. Hotaru and Mike looked like a blackened cross between a rabbit and dragon with claws, fangs, and glowing laser green eyes. Emiko, who looked like a cross between a blackened, muscled dog and a bear with glowing red eyes, stepped forward.

"Yes," she said with pride in her voice, "We are demons." Hotaru giggled at the looks on Tsuzuki and Anna's faces. Her girlfriend showed them her fangs again.

"What's the matter?" she asked, "You scared of real life demons? Wow! A Shinigami and a Kimoto are scared of us demons! That's just sad."

"Can we hurry this up?" Mike asked, "We can't stay too long in our true forms in Chijou, remember?" Emiko waved him off.

"Fine, fine," she said, "The show's over." She held out her hands to her roommates. Once Hotaru and Mike grabbed on, they chanted a reversion spell. White flames rose from the ground and surrounded the three demons. A breeze blew by them and took the flames. Tsuzuki and Anna saw the trio back in their human forms. Emiko stretched her neck her around.

"Oh!" the butch demon moaned, "Changing into my true form makes my muscles stiff." She noticed that Tsuzuki stayed close to Anna out of distrust of them. Emiko's face burned as she clenched her fists.

"Oh, so you hate us because we're demons, now?" she snapped. Tsuzuki glared at the demon woman.

"Well that's just peachy!" Emiko snapped. Hotaru rested her hand on her girlfriend's shoulder.

"Emiko-chan," she said in a low voice. Her girlfriend squeezed onto her hand.

"You here that?" the butch demon asked, "He hates us because we're demons! If he hated Hoto-chan and I because we were lesbians, that would be one thing. But, no! He hates us all because we're demons! A Shinigami who hates us because we are demons from Hell! That's just bullshit!" Her girlfriend tried to calm her down.

"Emiko-sama," she whispered.

"And what am I supposed to think?" Tsuzuki asked.

"We're not evil!" Emiko argued.

"Why should we believe you?" Anna asked. The butch lesbian sighed and rolled her eyes. She wasn't too proud to say this, but it had come to this point.

"Because," she admitted like a child caught in the act of doing something naughty, "We were exiled here among the living from Hell." Tsuzuki and Anna had rather puzzled looks on their faces from that statement.

"Why?" they asked. Emiko sighed as she let go of her girlfriend's hand.

"Want the long version or the short version?" she asked.

"Short," everyone in unison said.

"Fine," she said, "In '87, I decided to overthrow Hell to free some innocent souls. Needless to say, it failed and Mike, Hoto-chan, and I were exiled to Chijou; the end." The butch demon sneered at her audience.

"There, I told the truth!" Emiko snapped, "Happy now?" Tsuzuki blinked at her with one burning question in his mind.

"Why?" he asked.

"Why what?" Emiko asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Why revolt?" the Shinigami questioned, "I mean, what's the point?" Emiko's face softened some as she looked down at her feet.

"I made a promise to someone years ago…" she mumbled with her eyes looking away. The demon looked up right away. "That's all I'm going to say!" she said, "Got it?" Emiko paused for a breath. There, she told the truth; almost all of it. She didn't know if Anna was innocent or not.


	15. Fresh Kill

_Chapter Fourteen: Fresh Kill:_

_May 19th, 1976._

He waited in the dark parking lot for her. Tradition in Eda-Kimoto had to be acted upon tonight. He was the oldest son of Haruka and he couldn't let her down. For years, he tried to win her approval. Success with that constantly came and went. This time, the twenty-three year old wanted his mother's approval to stay with him.

Her name was Jennifer Day. She was a twenty-three year old American on a business trip with her company. Beautiful woman she was with her long flowing brown hair to her shoulders, rich olive tan complexion, and height about 5'5". Trim woman with a healthy figure under her deep green trench coat. Too bad she had to die tonight.

They met briefly earlier; Miss Jennifer needed directions to the Dragon Hotel. She needed to get there to meet up with her boss. He acted happy to help out and gave her the right directions. She thanked him and went on her way. As she left, he chose her to be the sacrifice. Just by the way she spoke highly of her boss gave him the suspicion that this was more than just professional relationship between them. He followed her in secret up all the way up to this point. He had the wires and knife ready under his coat. Tonight played in his favor too; the rain would wash away any evidence of what he was going to do.

At last, Jennifer came out to her car in the parking lot. His prey was fixing herself up before getting in her car. She pulled her hair out of her coat and smoothed it down. The woman checked her jewelry and make-up in the car windows. She seemed to be in quite a hurry, all classic signs of an affair. This made the sacrifice even tastier.

_I love immoral women!_, he thought, _Oh!_ _This will be perfect!_ He walked over to her slowly. Jennifer began digging for her keys in her purse. She couldn't seem to find them among her cigarettes, condoms, lighter, id, and make-up.

"Shit," she mumbled, "Come on, not now!" Jennifer began digging faster. Soon, the shadow of death crept faster than her. Jennifer looked for her keys still when she felt two wires closing around her throat. She dropped her purse on the wet pavement in shock. Her hand flew over her throat, touching the cold, thin steel. He wouldn't let up; he kept pulling tighter and tighter. Jennifer tried to struggle to get away. Her eyes widened in terror as she gasped for air. He grinned at her suffering. The thrill of it reminded him of the foreplay on his wedding night. The killer closed his eyes and took it all in. His kitsune found it all so intoxicating, so tasty, so… erotic! However, the games had to end. Time for Jennifer to die!

He pulled out his knife and stabbed her in the back. The poor woman gasped aloud in pain. He yanked out the knife and stabbed her again. A third stab followed behind, next a fourth, soon a fifth, and then, finally a sixth. Jennifer died on the fourth blow. Her curvy body slumped against him as blood poured from the wounds onto his jeans and leather jacket in the rain. He smirked to himself in victory. It felt just as good as the time he stabbed Daisuke before finishing him off. His kitsune could already smell her soul leaking out of her body.

He let the body drop to the ground at his feet. He yanked the wire from her lovely throat, wound it up, and put it away. The blood on the ground washed away with the rain into the sidewalk gutter. He knelt over the body and began softly chanting. He smirked to himself coldly as his finger went a bright fiery red.

He picked up Jennifer's right arm and traced the Kanji for "bear," "Eda," and "Kimoto" in her wrist. They burned as they set deep in her flesh. The sound delighted him so. He did the same with her left arm. Both marks cooled down almost immediately. Now, Jennifer's soul fed the kitsune in their powers. After this, he would have a good night with his wife in their bedroom. He sat back with exploding joy. He made his first blood sacrifice to the clan.

He picked up the knife and wiped the handle clean in the grass on the curb. He threw the murder weapon down the storm drain and let the rain do the rest. He stood over the body and smiled at the clouded, night sky. _I have done you proud, mama!_, he thought as he left the hotel parking lot.

By morning, the police found Jennifer's body in the parking lot. Just like in previous years, no leads and fear of the Eda-Kimoto clan made the case run cold.

_May 20th, 2009._

The awkwardness between Shinigami, handler, and demons was interrupted when Tsuzuki's cell phone rang.

"Excuse me," he said as he reached into his pocket to answer. The call only lasted for a minute, yet his face was so grave. He slowly hung up the phone. The Shinigami turned to the group.

"What's wrong, Tsuzuki?" Anna asked. The man swallowed at bit.

"There is another victim near the river down from here," Tsuzuki explained, "It looks like another kill from the Eda-Kimoto clan." They all raced to the crime scene.

Hisoka had been waiting at the scene for a few minutes by now. He looked up and saw his partner with Anna and the trio running towards him. The boy was slightly confused on why Emiko, Hotaru, and Mike were with them. Tsuzuki made it over to the younger Shinigami.

"What do we have here?" he asked. Hisoka turned to the body.

"Name is Hana," he said, "This old homeless man found her." Tsuzuki looked over at the old man sitting by a trash can. He cowered away in fear. The Shinigami couldn't blame him.

Tsuzuki looked at the body. Hana was about twenty-three years old and a lovely Japanese woman with a tiny figure. Her skin painted white as snow, red plump lips, and sky blue and sugar pink kimono indicated that she was either in cosplay or a geisha-in-training. Hana actually looked more asleep than dead like Anna was.

"She's been strangled and stabbed in the back six times," Hisoka reported, "Just like some of the victims in the previous cases." Tsuzuki turned to his partner.

"How can you tell the clan did this?" he asked.

"Look at her wrists," Hisoka murmured with a serious look on his face. Tsuzuki turned over the young woman's right arm to see. His eyes widened in shock when he saw the Kanji for bear, Eda, and Kimoto burned into Hana's wrist.

Anna and the demons ran over to the body. However when she got close, Anna froze in her tracks and gasped in pain. Everyone looked up when they heard the sound.

"Anna," Tsuzuki said, "What's wrong?" The woman gritted her teeth as she rubbed her wrists, sinking to her knees.

"It burns!" she yelped, "So cold… it's burning me! It burns!" The Shinigami figured out what she meant less than thirty seconds.

"Anna," Tsuzuki spoke up, "Show me your wrists." Anna took in sharper breaths as she lifted her arms to him. Everyone crowded around for a look. The same Kanji on Hana's wrists was also burned into Anna's. Only, her scars glowed a bright icy blue. Tsuzuki already put two and two together. The burns must be reacting to each other. Due to Anna being alive, hers were tormenting her by burning her wrists to the bone. Anna drew in a painful mouthful of air to cope.

"How bad is it?" Tsuzuki asked.

"It's so cold, it burns!" Anna wailed, "Make it stop! Please make it stop!" Hisoka turned to his partner.

"Take her away from the body!" he whispered. Tsuzuki nodded.

"Right!" he whispered. The man walked over to Anna and took her by the arm.

"Come on Anna, let's go," he whispered. They both walked away from the crime scene together. The demons watched them leave.

"Still believe she's the enemy?" Mike whispered to Emiko. The demon woman shook her head.

"Not anymore," she whispered, "There is no spell in the world that could make that much of a powerful impact with only contact. We still need to keep a close watch on her." Mike looked at her in a strange way.

"Why?" her roommate whispered. Emiko looked at him with a serious look on her face.

"We have to know what happens to her next," she replied, "Something tells me this whole thing is just warming for the big show and I want a front row seat." Mike didn't say a word as they watched the pair disappear from view while Hisoka took pictures of Hana to send back to Ju-Oh-Cho. The Shinigami glanced over his shoulder at the demons with a clear idea of what they were just by overhearing Emiko talking.

Across the street in front of a pet store, Haruka's oldest son watched with intrigue. He hadn't expected to see his niece again so soon since the night that he killed her. Now, he found himself glad that she was alive again. He hadn't had this much fun since he ended Jennifer Day's life back in '76. His ears kept a chuckle by his head. His eyes glanced behind him.

"Is it her this time, master?" a honey-smooth voice asked. The kitsune's master licked his lips.

"Oh yes," he hissed. The kitsune burned up against his shoulder.

Intriguing still was how the burns on Anna's wrists reacted to his latest victim's burns. He always wondered what would happen if the family's burns were on a living person and if they crossed with burns of a dead person. Good thing Haruka allowed her sons to kill again. This blood season would be the best one yet.

_Till we meet again, Anna!_, he thought, _This time, you won't escape!_ The old man turned and left the show.

_I will make you proud mama!_, he thought "_I promise!_ On a minor note, he was also glad for two things: he didn't stab Anna like the rest of his victims and that he burned the family's curse straight down to the bone in her wrists. Meanwhile, Kato waited for Anna and Tsuzuki in the nearest café.


	16. Search Party

_Chapter Fifteen: Search Party:_

_November 2nd, 1999._

Allison Parkman found herself in over her head this time. Her sixteen-year-old niece, Kimoto Anna, had come to live with her because her father died. The thirty-five year old had been used to living all alone. In fact, Allison had been raised to be independent early on in childhood while her father was in the army. Now, she had to take care of a non-English speaking teenager. The first day was just awkward; the girls couldn't bond with each other. They sat at the kitchen table in silence all night.

_What am I doing?_, Allison thought, _I haven't the slightest clue how to raise a child!_ She did love her niece; she just didn't know how to raise Anna. By day two, Allison had to surrender for help. She called her best friend, Daisy Kessler, for help by morning.

"I can't help her, Dais!" she complained, "Anna doesn't speak English and my Japanese is rusty. Plus, I am no good with kids! Help me!"

"Okay," Daisy said, "Calm down, I'll be right over." Lucky for Allison, they have been living next door since they retired from the army. Daisy came over to Allison's house and helped both girls. Over time, Daisy became a part of the family. Anna even called her, "Aunt Daisy."

_May 20th, 2009._

The situation hadn't gotten any better in the weeks they had been searching in Japan. Becky and the girls hadn't found any leads about what happened to Anna. Since Henry went back to San Diego after leaving them a strange text, the mission had come unglued. Becky needed to call on the big guns. She lowered her coffee cup on the table in the hotel restaurant.

"I have no choice," Becky told them, "I have to tell them." The women all looked at her with a flash of panic on their faces.

"No," the woman in the Pink Floyd shirt said, "You can't, they've been through enough as it is."

"But I have to, Gillian," Becky said, "We've kept them in the dark too long about our progress. I have to tell them something."

"Can't you hold off a bit longer?" Gillian asked.

"We can't," the leader declared. "Ms. Parkman and Ms. Kessler care about Anna as much as we do." Gillian said nothing. Becky gathered up her trash on the table.

"Excuse me," she said. The rest of the crew watched as Becky got up from the table and walked outside. Something told them that she had been keeping in contact with them in secret this whole time.

Becky threw away her trash and stood near the vending machines outside. She could still remembered the aunts just as clearly as if she was looking at them right now. Allison seemed to always have no emotion on her face. Her bright orange-hair was cut like a boy's. She had heterochromia—her left eye was a cool sapphire blue while her right was a milky caramel brown. Allison always looked scary alone; the bright colors she wore never helped. She wasn't really a warm or social person; many feared her, in fact. Yet, Allison did have a heart thanks to Anna and Daisy.

Speaking of Daisy, she was the opposite of her best friend. Everyone described her as a gentle woman who was great with kids. Daisy could be described as shy and sweet. She always looked up to Allison. Daisy wore darker colors with her deep dusty brown hair to her shoulders. She barely spoke; Allison did most of the talking. Both women knew how to survive. Becky pulled out her cell phone and dialed Allison's house phone. She paced around as she waited.

"Hello?" a grouchy voice asked on the other line. Becky leapt up into attention at the sound.

"Allison?" she asked. The younger woman waited for a reply.

"Oh, it's you," the older woman grumbled.

"Hi," Becky said with a smile on her face.

"Do you know what time it is?" Allison asked, "Where the hell are you guys?"

Becky looked up at the cloudless, afternoon Tokyo sky. "In Japan, ma'am."

"Why are you there?" the older woman asked with a hint of confusion in her voice.

"To find out what happened to Anna," Becky said in a strong voice.

"She's dead, Becky! It was suicide," Anna's aunt protested over the phone, "Just let it go!" Inside, the rest of the former photo club watched as Becky took a seat on the bench outside.

"I don't believe that! She's too strong for that!" the leader shouted over the phone.

"There are times when I wish I didn't agree with you so much. What do you think happened?" Allison replied. Becky looked around and placed her hand over her cell phone.

"I think she was murdered or sold into the sex trade," she whispered. Allison snorted at such a remark. Becky lowered her hand from the phone.

"What?" she asked.

"Even if it true, what will you do after that?" the aunt questioned. Becky thought about that as she looked above her..

"If she's alive, we will bring her home," she answered in a serious tone.

"And if Anna's dead?" Allison asked. The younger woman shrugged.

"We go home happy to have learned the truth. Come on, it'll be worth finding out the truth! Please, it's all I ask," she pleaded.

"And why can't you go to the police?" the grouchy older woman asked.

"We did that already," the leader explained.

"And what did they say?" Allison questioned with a voice that said, "I want to go back to sleep now."

"They brushed us off with something like, 'We'll look into it!' But, I think they're hiding something. It just seems so odd that Japan would the rest of the world that Anna committed suicide. Makes me want to find out what really happened and why. Come on, don't you want to know that truth and give Anna some peace to rest with?" Becky answered with a sigh. Allison thought about all of this. The twenty-six year old Pomeranian puppy on the line her think of Anna when she first came to San Diego back in '99—desperate for some guidance after an earth-shattering event.

"Fine!" Allison hissed, "but this better not turn into a wild goose chase!" Becky's eyes lit up in joy.

"Thanks, Ms. P!" she exclaimed, "You won't regret this! We'll get to the bottom of this, I promise!"

"Whatever," Allison mumbled. Becky nodded as the phone hung up. Meanwhile miles away in the busy-beautiful city of Tokyo…


	17. Kato

_Chapter Sixteen: Kato:_

_July 21st, 1994._

"You're making a terrible mistake!" Kato pleaded to a twenty-nine year old Daisuke as he packed up things in the room he shared with Anna.

"No," the younger man argued back, "I already took the job in Tokyo. This will benefit both of us. Anna and I have to leave this place; it's too boring."

"Boring or not, you are safe in this village!" the older man yelled.

"That's just it," Daisuke pointed out, "It's too safe. Besides, Anna needs to be around kids her age." He reached into the closet and packed away more of his daughter's clothes. Kato watched as his stomach turned.

"But what if your mother finds you and her?" he asked desperately. Daisuke shrugged and shook his head. He turned around from the suitcase that he was packing his family's possession into.

"I know," he said, "But I can't keep Anna innocent in this village forever. That's just not right." They knew that Haruka and the family were closing on them. The younger man hated to think what would happen if she got her hands on her grandchild. He sat down on the futon.

"But," Daisuke finished, "I will wait until August. Anna will be done with classes then. Once she is settled out of school, I'll give her the chance to say goodbye to this place." Kato nodded despite still being against this whole idea.

"Agreed," he said. Both stayed quiet in the moment for reflection.

_May 20th, 2009._

"How are your wrists?" Tsuzuki asked. He had taken Anna to a local café. The Shinigami ordered a glass of ice once they sat down. He took the cubes and wrapped them in a napkin. Anna held the cold wet paper to her wrists as she took in slow breaths. A waitress walked over to the table out of curiosity and concern.

"Is she okay?" she asked. Tsuzuki nodded quickly.

"Yes," he said, "Just a minor burn. We've got it under control now." The waitress nodded and went away.

"Hey, could you get me some apan while you're at it?" he asked loud enough to be her as disappeared from view to the kitchen. Tsuzuki turned back to Anna.

That was eight minutes ago. The woman nodded now.

"The burning has stopped," she said.

"Let me see your wrists," Tsuzuki said in a low voice. Anna slowly removed the melting ice. The Shinigami inspected the burns as he took hold of her wrists. The blue light was gone and powdery-white pink scar tissue took its place.

"They've healed nicely," Tsuzuki said with optimism in his voice. Anna looked at her wrists frowning in discomfort.

"Ugly sight, aren't they?" she asked.

"Huh?" Tsuzuki asked back. Anna sighed and shook her head.

"These burns…" she said in a low voice, "They are so ugly… don't you think?" Anna looked up from her scars at Tsuzuki. He saw the pain and disgrace in her eyes. Someone in her family cut her deep. The Shinigami figured that the clan killed her like they did Daisuke, Hana, and many others.

"No!" Tsuzuki said quickly, "They'll not that bad…" She didn't seem to believe that at all. _Poor woman_, the Shinigami thought as he felt his own heart ache for her.

Somebody cleared their throat next to their table. The pair looked up and saw Kato Iwao standing over them. Anna's face went into blank surprise while Tsuzuki went into defensive mode. Kato smiled at the pair as he gave them a little wave.

"And how are my two favorite people?" he asked. Anna gave off a small gasp.

"Kato-san!" she said.

"What the hell do you want?" Tsuzuki snapped.

"I just want to eat and talk with you guys," the old man said in a gentleman-like tone. The Shinigami glared at him.

"Why?" he asked. Kato didn't answer; he sat down with the pair. Tsuzuki observed Anna and Kato to understand the relationship between Anna and Kato. The older man rested his rough hand on his cheek.

"Anna-chan," he said, "So good to see you again, alive and well."

"Yes," Anna said with an emotionless nod. Her finger ran along the edge on the wet glass.

"How have you been?" Kato asked.

"Fine," she said, "And you?" Her eyes didn't really meet with his as she spoke.

"Good, thank you very much," the man replied, "Have you found out what happened to your father yet?"

"No, I got killed instead," Anna said with a hint of bitterness in her voice.

"But you're still alive," Kato pointed out.

"Yes, I am," his former tenant answered. Tsuzuki listened and watched the whole time. Anna didn't hate Kato, but yet, she was so distant to him. To the Shinigami, this was the okay to express his suspicions about Kato to Anna later on.

Outside, Hisoka and the demon trio watched them from outside invisibly. While the Shinigami didn't really trust Rihoko's neighbors, he had to put that aside and check on his partner and the clan's murder target. Meanwhile, Emiko planned on giving him a little "demonstration" of the truth for him when the right moment came along. For now, they all had their eyes on Kato.

"Who's that guy?" Emiko whispered. Hisoka shook his head. They too had their suspicions about Kato. Who was he and what was his connection in all of this? Why was he so interested in Anna so much? Kato looked at Tsuzuki for a moment and then turned back to Anna. A fox-like smile came onto his face as he could see a little prediction for them in his head.

"You've got a good man here," he told former tenant, "You two will be just perfect. Take care of each other and you both will survive." Anna and Tsuzuki looked at him confused.

"What?" Tsuzuki asked.

"What are you insinuating, Kato-san?" Anna questioned him with an eyebrow raised. Kato shrugged.

"You both are smart people," he said simply, "You will understand in time." Both Shinigami and woman had no comment. _Yes, these kids will be fine_, Kato thought as he rose to his feet.

"Well," he said, "Nice talking to you guys again. I hope we can share a meal together one day." The older man gracefully turned to leave.

_Don't bank on it_, Tsuzuki thought. On his way out, Kato turned to the waitress.

"Miss," he addressed her, "Put whatever they order on my tab. Here's my card." The waitress nodded in surprise as he handed her his debt card.

"Of course!" she said flustered. She took the card and ran it through the cash register. Anna and Tsuzuki looked confused at the old man as he left the café.

Hisoka and the demon trio moved aside as he walked past them outside. Kato looked up at the sky.

_Oh Daisuke_, he thought, _You shouldn't have left the village._


	18. Evening Dinner

_Chapter Seventeen: Evening Dinner:_

_September 14th, 1976._

The funeral went on until sundown. Seven-year-old Kato Midori looked like a little doll in her casket. Two days ago, she lost to months of illness. She was so young that it caused the whole village pain. Her father, Iwao, couldn't perform the funeral ceremony. He had done funerals for years; the priest couldn't do this one. Iwao tired, but it was just too much. He and his wife, Michiko, ended up in the audience. Her parents watched on helpless as the golden yellow flames feasted on the small child that night. Six months later, Michiko followed her daughter. Kato hadn't been fine ever since.

_May 20th, 2009._

Tsuzuki and Hisoka made a request to have a background check on Kato Iwao. They just didn't trust that guy and it turns out they weren't the only ones. The rest of Ju-Oh-Cho didn't trust Kato either. Surprisingly, it only took an hour for something to come up on Kato. He had a profile in Meifu's database. Everyone crowded around the computer to read. Turns out, Kato had a heavy file on him as well.

"Kato-san used to be a priest?" Tsuzuki asked in shock, "That explains how he had access to a Hell Stone in the first place… and how he knows I'm a Shinigami."

"But what does he want with Anna-san?" Tatsumi asked.

"You think that Kato-san and Haruka are…" Watari started to ask. Everyone stared at him with silent caution before he could finish that question. Tsuzuki looked at Konoe.

"What is it, Chief?" he asked. Konoe thought about that for a brief second.

"You and Hisoka go out and get more on Kato," he assigned, "I don't like that guy's involvement in this case."

"Yes sir!" Tsuzuki and Hisoka both said. Watari gave them the address before they left. Kato lived all the way outside of the city in a run-down apartment. The boys appeared before apartment 217. Hisoka looked at the paper Watari gave him.

"This is the place," he said.

"Ready to do this?" his partner asked. The boy nodded and the Shinigami teleported inside. Kato even had the binds closed too early in the evening. Tsuzuki turned to Hisoka.

"Where do we start?" he asked.

"Bookcase," the boy answered. They walked over to the tall, black, dusty bookcase. The dim moonlight through the binds worked for them. At first, the boys just found old books, nothing special to be honest, just some holy books. Then along came a bigger surprise.

Tsuzuki found an old little book of photos. Kato was there as the main subject of course, but he was with a woman; a woman and a girl to be exact. Tsuzuki looked at each of the pictures closely. The woman looked very beautiful standing next to Kato. She looked about thirty with soft flowing plum-black hair to her shoulders. Hey pretty olive green eyes reminded him of Anna's. Kato towered over her in every picture they were in together. The little girl looked cute herself. Her face was round with little fat, rosy cheeks. Her stringy honey-brown hair was parted into two long ponytails. Her eyes were of a shiny green glass color like a glass bottle. Her brightly-colored play dresses looked so cute. Tsuzuki looked on confused.

_What is this?_, he thought.

"Hey Tsuzuki," Hisoka whispered, "Look at this." His partner leaned over to see. Hisoka held a wedding anniversary card in his hand. "Thank you for twelve beautiful years together. Let's have more happy ones to come. Love, Iwao" it read. Both boys looked at each other confused.

"That can't be right," Tsuzuki said, "He lives alone, doesn't he?"

"Yes," the boy said, "Since '94." Okay, this was weird. Was Kato shady and mental as well?

Suddenly, the lights flipped on. The Shinigami looked up to see Kato standing in the doorway. He stared his "guests" up and down. Hisoka studied him closely; with his empathetic powers, he could sense that Kato was cold yet lonely.

"Oh," Kato said, "I wasn't expecting any guests for dinner." Tsuzuki and Hisoka looked at him confused.

"What?" they asked.

"Come," he said, "We'll talk over dinner." Kato walked over to the kitchen. Tsuzuki and Hisoka looked at each other still confused.

The three gentlemen sat at the table eating grilled fish, rice, and udon. Well, Kato did most of the eating while Tsuzuki and Hisoka sat staring at him in silence. Kato paused and looked up at them.

"Come on guys," he said, "Eat up! You're food's getting cold."

"I'm not hungry!" Hisoka spoke up.

"Me neither," Tsuzuki lied. The older man shrugged.

"Suit yourself," he said, "Anyway, you had questions for me, I can tell. Okay, spill it. What's so important that you had to break into my apartment for it?" The Shinigami didn't speak at first.

"We heard you used to be a priest," Hisoka spoke up, "Why did you stop?" Kato didn't look up as the other two guys waited for an answer.

"Yes," Kato said at last, "I was priest years ago."

"What happened? Why did you stop?" Tsuzuki asked. Kato lifted his head.

"Back in spring of 1959, I met a young woman named Hino Michiko," the old man answered, "Me being young and naïve then, I fell in love with her. Michiko-chan was a bright and beautiful sweetheart. She came from a wealthy high-class family. I didn't care about any of that. I loved Michiko-chan for who she was. There was a problem, however. I was a priest and wanted to keep my vow of chastity.

He lowered his chopsticks on his empty bowl. "I turned to another priest for help. He told me to act on my feelings in a pure way. He suggested to take it slow. I wasn't sure at first. In the end, I asked Michiko-chan out on a date. She said yes. From there, we became a couple.

He sat back with a small smile on his face. "Four years later, Michiko-chan and I were married. We were a happy couple, yet Michiko-chan kept having the feeling that we were missing something. She didn't know what it was for years. So one day, I wished that the answer would find her. Then in summer of 1968, Michiko-chan started feeling sick. I thought my wife had come down with a stomach virus. Turns out, my Michiko-chan was pregnant. She had finally gotten her answer. On February second 1969, our angel, Midori-chan, was born. Her mother and I loved her so much. You could say that we were an ideal family, but then it all went to pieces."

"Did something happen?" Tsuzuki asked.

"A month after her sixth birthday, Midori-chan fell ill," Kato went on, "At first, it was minor, but then, it just got worse and worse. The doctors couldn't help her and Michiko-chan and I didn't know what to do. All we could do was watch our daughter's life slip away. On September twelfth, Midori-chan died when she was only seven. I couldn't even do the funeral ceremony; another priest had to take my place. Then a month later, Michiko-chan became ill with the same disease Midori-chan had. Six months later, she was dead too."

His hands trembled as he spoke. "It was as if after Midori-chan died, my wife had lost the will to live." Kato shook his head as his eyes well up with tears.

"I have great healing powers," he went on, "How ironic! A man with great healing powers and I couldn't even save my own family from illness! After that, I lost interest in life. I quit being a priest after Michiko-chan's death and have kept to myself ever since." Tsuzuki and Hisoka stared on silent. Dinner was quiet for the rest of the night. Kato saw them out afterwards.

"Tonight was great," he said as the boys went out the door, "We should have dinner together again someday!" The Shinigami said nothing as they disappeared into the night.


	19. Black Swan Song

_Chapter Eighteen: Black Swan Song:_

_February 18th, 1982._

Kato lived in the village outside of Kobe for five years now. The people didn't ask any questions when he first came there; they just welcomed him with open arms. Kato found their welcoming attitude quite strange.

_These people are nice_, he thought, _Too nice._ Still, the village was quiet; that's all he needed.

Kato had just gotten up for the morning when there was a knock on the door. The man looked up confused.

_Huh?_, Kato thought, _Who the hell is that?_ He walked over to the door and slid it open. An old priest stood on the porch with his robes on and everything. Kato recognized him right away.

"Harada-sama," he said, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," his former boss said calmly. Kato raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why?" he asked Harada didn't answer at first.

"May I come in?" he asked. Something told Kato that that question had only one answer to it.

"Fine," he said with a sigh, "Come in!"

"Thank you, Iwao," Harada said with a kind smile. The old priest bowed and went inside. Kato looked uncomfortable as he slid the door shut behind them. Harada sat at the dining table. Kato sat in front of him and sighed.

"What do you want, Harada-sama?" he questioned. The old priest didn't flinch.

"Come back home, Iwao," he pleaded.

"No!" Kato said, "I can't go back!" Harada looked on with sympathy.

"Iwao," he said, "You can't keep blaming yourself for their deaths. It wasn't your fault!" Kato shook his head.

"I could have saved them!" he said, "I had the power to do it." Harada looked at him oddly.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Kato became nervous as he looked down at his hands. Should he confess his talent to his former mentor?

Kato lowered his head closer to Harada. "Have you ever wondered why all of our sick and dying got better so quickly?" he whispered. The old priest looked at him confused.

"The spirits healed them," he reasoned. Kato shook his head.

"No," he insisted, "I healed them." Harada didn't believe him at first.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. Kato battled to keep himself together in front of his former mentor.

"You remember when you got that burn on your hand five years ago?" he asked in a low voice.

"Yes," his former mentor answered.

"Show me your hand," Kato whispered. Harada did so slowly. Kato took in a deep breath, held out his own hand, and shut his eyes. The man chanted his breath lightly. Instantly, the burn scar healed away. Harada stared at his former student. Kato nodded.

"Yes," he replied, "I am a healer. Midori-chan and Michiko-chan's illnesses rejected my powers. As a result, they died and I couldn't save them. My hope for redemption is to save another… someday…" Harada watched him as he felt touched by his former student's words.

_May 22nd, 2009._

Haruka had enough; she saw Kato as a threat to her mission of killing her granddaughter. The old woman took the Shinkansen out to Kobe early in the morning. She knew a good friend all the way out in her children's birthplace. Haruka knew her old school friend well.

The old woman made it to the port city. Ah, it felt just like the old days. Haruka ran away here back in the early fifties after Juriko's death. She met a local boy there and he fell in love with her while she decided to use him for her own agenda. Two years later, they were married and then the kids were born. Haruka shook herself back to reality. She had a little work to do. If she was correct, her friend would be outside of the city still. Haruka grinned to herself.

_Time for a little reunion!_, she thought. The old woman teleported out of the city. She came to the quieter part of Kobe. The old woman continued on her path to the little local grade school.

Narusawa Hitomi lived a quiet life. She taught kindergarten to make ends meet. She lived in the room above the schoolhouse where she worked. At first glance, Hitomi looked like a normal woman, but she had a dark secret to her. In reality, Hitomi was really a kitsune with five tails in a human form. Not only that, she used to be an assassin as well. However, Hitomi was ashamed of her past. She tried to atone for her crimes by teaching the children in the rural part of Kobe. Sadly, the past couldn't let her go.

Hitomi was dismissing the children for the day when Haruka came up to the school. When the kitsune saw her, her face a pale grey.

_Oh no!_, she thought, _Haruka's back!_ The old woman made it to the teacher when the last child had gone home for the day.

"Hello Hitomi," Haruka greeted her old friend with a smile, "It's been a long time." Hitomi lowered her head.

"Yes, it has…" she mumbled.

"Aw, what's wrong?" the kitsune handler asked, "You're ashamed of me, aren't you?" Hitomi didn't answer.

"What are you doing here?" she asked softly.

"Can we take this inside?" she asked as she put her arm around her shoulders. Hitomi looked away some.

"Sure…" she mumbled. Her old friend wouldn't listen otherwise. Both women want inside and Hitomi led Haruka upstairs to her room. They sat on the bed.

"Okay, what do you want now after so long?" Hitomi asked. Haruka grinned at her.

"I have a job for you," she said. Hitomi shook her head.

"No!" she said, "I stopped killing a long time ago! I won't go back to that life! I won't!" Haruka looked at her kindly as she gently took her by the hand.

"Oh come on Hitomi," she pleaded, "We've known each other since our school days. You would do me a world of service with this one last deed. Please? I'll leave you alone for good afterwards. Please, it's all I ask." Hitomi looked away nervously. That was the thing about Haruka.

"Okay," the kitsune sighed. Haruka smiled at her wickedly. She pulled out Kato's picture. The teacher looked with her.

"This is the target?" she asked.

"Yes," the old lady said. Hitomi looked confused.

"Why?" she asked.

"Let's just say, he's an old pest that needs to be dealt with soon," her friend answered.

"How soon?" the kitsune replied.

"Tonight, tops," her friend answered. Hitomi sighed. She _was_ indebted to Haruka after all.

"Fine," the kitsune said, "It will be done!" The old lady grinned at her dear friend.

"Very good," she said, "Your pay will be delivered in a _nice_ huge sum, okay?" Hitomi nodded grimly.

Meanwhile, Anna got another e-mail. This time from someone called darkprotector . She turned to the boys.

"Hey," the woman spoke up to Tsuzuki and Hisoka, "I got another message." The Shinigami hurried over to the computer. They looked along with her as she opened the message.

Kimoto-san:

Your grandmother sees you as a threat. Be on your guard; she will do anything to have you killed. You have the power to match and overthrow her. The only way to defeat her is to survive.

"What do they mean, 'I'm stronger than my grandmother?'" Anna asked, "I thought my powers were locked up."

"Ask them," Hisoka suggested. Anna shook her head.

"No good," she replied, "Tried it with the first message, it bounced right back with an error message."

"Ah," the younger Shinigami answered. The boys had a guess as to who had been sending her the e-mails, but did they have the proof?

In a remote internet café downtown, Kato logged out of Yahoo mail and deleted the new dummy account. He sat back from the computer. Japan made technology easier for old-timers like him and the little tech juniors were so helpful too. They just helped the "newbies" without any questions.

This whole thing was his great scheme. He made a promise to himself. Wrecked with guilt over Midori and Michiko's deaths, Kato promised himself to help the next soul he got emotionally attached to in need. At first, it looked like a pipe dream. Then in March of 1983, Daisuke and Anna came along. Baby Anna reminded him of Midori. From then on, Kato gave it his all to keep Anna and her father safe from Haruka.

Even when Daisuke and his daughter left, Kato's mission still went on. He set father and daughter out in Kimoto Manor with a good sum of money. Daisuke refused at first, yet like old Haruka, Kato could be quite persuasive. The young man took the house and the money in the end. After Daisuke's death, Kato planned to push Anna to get revenge against her grandmother. He waited for ten years for Anna to be physically refined to awaken the mother kitsune. Last month, the old man flew out to San Diego to pay Anna a visit. He healed all of the scars in her heart and told her some of the truth.

When she got killed, Kato was there too. He had good friends at the police station for this. The old fox convince them that Anna was his niece and they should give _him_ her backpack. Now, how to get the body and bring her back from the dead? Kato used the police to obtain Anna's body. Next, he used his former priest status to gain access to the legendary Hell Stone. Once Anna was in the funeral home, everything was almost set. He couldn't just bring her back from the dead all alone; he needed to have little evidence of direct involvement. Tsuzuki Asato fit into the plot perfectly. From there, Kato acted in the shadows by sending Anna anonymous e-mails and giving her money in Niwa Midori's account.

Kato got out of his seat, packed up his bag, and headed out for the night. The former priest was careful to cover his tracks. He went to different internet café every night and deleted his dummy accounts afterwards.

"Good night, sir!" the boy at the desk told him. Kato nodded and waved as he left. He made sure he spoke to no one at all either. Discretion was the key here.

Kato decided to take a taxi to the graveyard tonight. He never did like the subways at all. The old man just loved seeing the city at night. Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted when he sensed someone next to him. The man quickly became defensive. The old woman turned her head and saw him.

"Hello Iwao," she greeted him with a wicked smile. When Kato didn't speak, Haruka pressed onwards.

"Not in a talking mood, huh?" she asked, "Alright, I'll talk then. I know what you're doing. I don't like it."

"Why Haruka!" Kato said at last, "I have no idea what you're getting at." The old woman gritted her teeth.

"Don't pull that with me!" she yelled, "You're ruining my plans!" Kato laughed to himself. Haruka became angrier.

"And what the hell is so damn funny?!" she barked. Kato stopped laughing and turned to her.

"I know you killed Juriko," he said, "I have no proof. So, this is the next best thing for a little payback."

"What?!" Haruka snapped. Kato grinned still.

"Sorry Haruka, you and Muraki-sensei just won't get your way!" he topped, "I will take the whole clan down. Even death won't stop me from carrying out my promise to my wife and daughter." Haruka really wanted to scream. Right then, the taxi pulled up. Kato rose to his feet and turned to the old woman.

"Good night!" he said in a mocking tone. Then he got into the cab. As it drove away, Haruka grinned to herself.

_Death, huh?_, she thought, _I'll have that arranged real soon!_ She walked away into the night. Kato rode all the way to the cemetery. He thought ahead to if he was caught and killed as well. This morning, he sent a letter and instructions to a dear old friend back in the second old village. She had to pull through on through on this plot.

_Don't fail me!_, Kato thought, _I want to rub it in Haruka's face through death!_

Kato made it to the graveyard. He got out and paid the driver. Once the cab drove off, the former priest began his heartbreaking voyage to his wife and daughter's graves. He brought food and candles with him. Painful memories of being helpless flooded his mind. He had saved many people from death before. Why couldn't he save his own family? Was it divine punishment for playing god? Nah, it can't be. Why couldn't he use his powers when he needed them the most?

Kato made it to the graves. He lit the candles and left the food. The old man sat back some. Thirty-two years, so long already? Kato looked at the headstone. He drew in a deep breath.

"Midori-chan, Michiko-chan!" he said, "I love you and I will atone for not saving you before!"

"That is so sweet to hear!" a familiar woman's voice cooed. Kato pulled out his knife from his jacket and leapt around ready to attack. To his surprise, Hitomi stood before him in the form of Michiko with a gun pointed at him. The old hadn't expected this at all. "Michiko" smirked at him.

"Honey, it's been so long!" she said in sweet and mocking tone. Then the sweet-faced assassin pulled the trigger.

Kato slowly sank backwards to the ground as his eyes slowly drew shut. Hitomi wiped down the gun and disposed of it before she left. She did her job, now she could go back to her quiet life. Kato Iwao laid dead at seventy-five near his family's graves.


	20. Karma Police

_Chapter Nineteen: Karma Police:_

_Halloween 1999._

Sixteen-year-old Kimoto Kaoru waited outside dressed in black. That was a cold night with a strong chance of rain back then. He'd rather be in bed right about now. His dad said that they had to be out tonight. Why? His grandmother, Haruka, ordered her oldest son, his father, out on a hit tonight. His father was more than happy to do so, but he needed some help. So it was the dad, his two younger brothers, Kaoru, and his cousin.

Kaoru felt someone nudge him in the back. He slowly looked up to see his dad wearing a Kabuki mask of a priest.

"What's on your mind?" he asked. Kaoru shook his head.

"Nothing," he lied, "Nothing at all." His father slapped the boy in the face. Kaoru winced in pain, but said nothing. He learned the hard way that crying makes things worse. His father learned that from his grandmother. The boy bit his lip hard to fight back tears. His father glared at him through his mask.

"You can't get cold feet on this mission!" he barked, "We have to do this! It is the only way that I… er… we can get mom to finally appreciate me after so long!" Kaoru looked at him coldly. His dad wanted his mother's approval after all of these years. Nothing he did was ever good enough for her. He kept trying to impress Haruka with more killings and blood sacrifices. Kaoru didn't understand his father. Part of the problem was that the father never bonded with the son. A relationship between them never existed. Except for the fights and occasional beatings, the boys hardly interacted with each other. Kaoru said nothing to his dad and always tried to avoid him whenever possible, but sometimes like tonight, that didn't turn out that way. Kaoru looked at his father begrudgingly.

"Fine," he mumbled, "I'll do it!" His father turned to the other boys.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Okay," the oldest said, "Let's go!" The men headed towards the manor when the road was clear. Kaoru sighed discontent.

"Right…" he mumbled. Then the boy put on his mask and walked up to the crew. They all made it into the yard. The father turned to his son.

"Okay Kaoru," he said, "Just go up to the door and convince your cousin to let you in." His son looked confused.

"How?" he asked.

"Just… make up something!" his father hissed, "Say it's an emergency!"

"Okay…" Kaoru replied uneasily. The boy walked up to the Kimoto Manor door and rang the bell. Anna opened the door a crack.

"Uh… can I help you?" she asked.

"Please miss!" he pleaded, "It's an emergency! We need to use your phone!" Anna looked at him slightly confused.

"I'm sorry, we don't have a phone," she lied.

"Please!" Kaoru insisted, "It's a matter of life or death! We need to contact help right away!" Anna paused for a moment before looking inside. She turned back to Kaoru and nervously bit her lip.

"Okay," Anna said at last, "But please make it quick." Kaoru nodded his head.

"Oh thank you, miss!" he said. Anna slowly pulled open the door, but then Kaoru, his father, uncles, and cousin rushed inside to attack. Anna screamed as Kaoru shoved her in the closet and blocked it off. The girl pounded on the door yelling for help. Her cousin lowered his head.

_I'm so sorry, Anna_, he thought. He counted down what would happen next in his heart. Daisuke ran into the living room and spotted the intruders.

"You!" he barked. The men looked up and saw their target.

"At long last!" Kaoru's father announced, "Daddy dearest is here!" Kaoru didn't participate in the following battle and slaughter; he stood against the back wall and watched. He never had the stomach for killing. The boy was even worried for Anna being trapped in the closet while her dad was dying. He hoped that he could make it up to her one day.

_May22th, 2009._

On the same night Kato died, Anna heard the doorbell ring. She looked up from her laptop.

_Hm?_, the woman thought, _Who's that at this hour?_ Rihoko had a night class tonight and Yoko-chan and Seita were in their beds sound asleep. Tsuzuki and Hisoka already left. Maybe it's the killer?

Anna got up from her desk and walked out of Daisuke's office. As she silently crept down the hall, a strange feeling came over her.

_I feel like I've done this before,_ she thought, _Don't know why…_ Anna made it to the door and slid it open a crack. A man about her age stood on the other side looking in. He seemed to be homeless. The beard on his face made him look like a Japanese version of the Unabomber. He looked so pale and wore all black. Anna looked at him rather confused.

"Can I… help you?" she asked. The man looked at her with helpless eyes.

"Please miss," he pleaded, "My car ran out of gas on my way home and I don't have any spare tanks. May I stay the night here?" Anna stared on uneasily; this all felt too familiar, almost like déjà vu. Something told her not to let him in.

"Sure…" Anna replied uneasily. The man bowed his head.

"Thank you, miss," he said. The woman reluctantly let him in and the man walked into the manor. Anna closed the door behind them.

Her new guest looked around his new surroundings. Anna observed him still uneasy. There was an odd feeling in her gut.

_Where have I seen him before?_, she thought, _Where? Where?_ Her answer came when the man turned to her.

"How it really been that long?" he asked, "I remember when this place didn't have a phone. Anna paused and looked at him on that question.

"What did you say?" she asked.

"Well, I came to this place when I was sixteen and the previous owner said that they didn't have a phone," he explained, "I guess you installed a new one." That little sentence triggered a chain reaction. Anna's eyes widened as her brain instantly made the connection.

_Oh shit, it's him!_, she thought. This man was the boy who was at her door that fateful Halloween night. This was the boy who tricked her into opening the door for him and the other intruders to lock her away and kill Daisuke. The memories flooded her head again.

"Miss," a voice spoke up. "Is something wrong?" Anna quickly returned to earth. The boy, now a man, stared at her, looking concerned.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Anna quickly nodded.

"Y-Yes!" she lied, "Just remembered something." The man kept his eyes locked dead on her. Anna decided to put on a brave front.

"Really, I'm fine!" she lied. "Look, you're hungry, aren't you?" The man blinked in confusion.

"Uh, yeah, I guess…" he replied.

"Great!" Anna chirped, "I'll heat you something to eat and work from there." The man gave her a blank stare.

"Are you sure?" he asked, "I don't want to cause any trouble."

"Oh not at all!" his hostess lied, "It's a joy to have new people here at times."

"Okay…" he said uneasily.

"Good!" Anna said with a rich smile, "Take a seat at the table and I'll get you something to eat shortly!" She pushed him to the dining room table. The man had no choice but to comply.

In the kitchen, Anna began plotting. _He must pay for what he did!_, she thought, _I have to make him pay for Papa's death!_ An idea for this formed in her head. Her psychology minor came into good use. She needed to study her target and then work from there. Before that, she needed to look for food.

Anna began looking in the cabinets. She spotted some instant ramen. The woman breathed for a moment. _Okay_, she thought, _Good enough._ Anna turned back to the dining room.

"Uh… all we have is ramen at the moment," she lied, "That okay?"

"Sure," the guest said, "That's fine!" Vengeance took over her mind from there. Anna set up the kitchen to start cooking. As the ramen cooked, she looked around in the cabinet with the pills. It took a minute to find what she was looking for. Anna found some sleeping pills in the very back.

_Gotcha!_, she thought. She hurried back to the pot and dropped four sleeping pills in the ramen and mixed them in. Payback would be sweet tonight.

When the ramen was done, Anna took it off the stove. She put the food in a bowl and carried the trap to her guest.

"Here you are," she said, "Nice hot ramen!" The man became overjoyed.

"Thanks, miss!" he said. Anna joined him at the table as the man began eating. The hostess watched for a moment.

"So," she spoke up, "Tell me about yourself. Where did you come from?" The man glanced at her. Anna gave him a kind little smile.

"Well," he started, "I just got divorced; we grew apart. One of those things, you know?"

"I see," she said with a nod. Her guest took another bite. Lucky for her, he was in a talking mood.

"It's funny," he went on, "My life has always been a screw-up. My dad and I never got along. He was too busy kissing up to grandma." The man shook his head.

"So pathetic really," he went on, "Dad never paid any attention to me. It was always about what grandma wanted. That's part of the reason why we never got along. It's so stupid! He used to beat me all of the time, you know? When he got angry, dad would lock me in the closet for a long time. That's why I'm… oh, what's the word?"

"Claustrophobic?" Anna suggested.

"Yeah," the man said, nodding.

"I see…" the hostess replied in thought. She had just found a fitting punishment for her guest. All needed to do was wait.

In one hour, the guest passed out on the table. Anna rose to her feet and walked over to the target. He was out cold; now for the next part. She reached into her pocket and drew out her cell phone. She dialed a familiar number.

_Come on_, she thought as she waited, _Don't pick up._ Just as expected, voice-mail.

"Hey Tsuzuki, it's me," she said. "I found one of the guys that killed Papa," She laughed in the middle of the message, "Come and get me before I do something really bad. Bye." Anna hung up the phone. She turned back to the man. The woman breathed some.

In a few minutes, the man awoke to see pitch black all around. Panic came over him as he began to fear the worst. The man slowly felt all around him. It was then he knew that he was in a tight closed space of a closet. The panic increased as he started pounding on the door.

"Let me out!" he cried, "I'm scared in here. Let me out!"

"No!" Anna yelled on the outside as she sat across from the closet door. The man became bewildered as well. He pounded on the door harder.

"Why are you doing this?!" he yelped, "Have I offended you somehow?!"

"Oh yes!" Anna replied like a mad woman, "Ten years ago on Halloween!" The man tried his best to remember. Suddenly, it hit him.

"Anna?" the man asked. "Cousin?" The woman didn't think about the last part. She wanted to make him suffer. She wanted to make him feel the pain she felt that night. He needed to pay for what he did.

"I don't get it, Anna!" the poor man yelped, "Why are you doing this to me? Please, let me out! I'm scared!"

"Are you now?" the woman asked.

"Yes!" he victim yelped. Anna took in his breathlessness with made delight. He deserved to feel the terror she felt that night years ago. Insanity continued to eat at her logic.

Her victim panicked inside his cell. Sweat broke out all over his body as he broke down trembling. His heart raced out of control.

"Cousin!" he pleaded, "Dear cousin! You don't want to kill me! I-I-I'm not your enemy! I didn't kill your dad!"

"LIAR!" Anna screamed, "You're just as guilty as they are!" The man panted even worse now. Thoughts of dying and going crazy invaded his mind. The poor soul felt the dark wall closing in on him, cutting off his air. Anna was choking him with her cold cruelty.

"Really, I didn't touch him!" he begged in between breaths, "I-I-I didn't want to do it! My dad dragged me along! He told me to get you to let us in! After that, I didn't do anything, I swear! I just stood near the wall. I'm telling the truth! I swear! I swear! Please let me out of here! I think I might die in here!" Anna didn't hear his voice anymore. All she heard was her own sixteen-year-old voice crying for help as Daisuke was being beaten to death. This bastard deserved to suffer until he died. The jury in her head had reached that verdict.

Death breathed down the victim's neck. Derealization took over his mind. He felt cold and hot all over. The poor soul soon felt light-headed. He soon couldn't think straight anymore.

"I'm sorry, dad!" he cried from his childhood, "I'll be good! Please help me somebody!"

"Anna!" a voice yelled at his captor. The woman looked up to Tsuzuki and the boys stood in the doorway. The Shinigami saw Anna with worried horror. Her eyes were red with hate. She looked possessed by the devil. Her body was there, but her mind had vanished. Hisoka could feel her wrath without touching her. Tsuzuki stepped forward.

"Anna, what's going on?" he asked, "Where is the man that killed your father?" Anna pointed to the blocked off closet. The boys got a clear picture of what happened. Tsuzuki tried to stay calm.

"Anna," he said, "Let him go."

"NO!" the woman screamed. "HE DESERVES TO DIE!"

"Why?" the Shinigami questioned. Anna froze; that question was strong enough to snap her back into reality. The woman's hands began to tremble. She looked down at her feet.

"I… I…" Anna stammered out. She finally sank down to the floor crying. The vengeance left her mind and took all of her energy with it. In the end, the whole punishment trap proved rather pointless. Tsuzuki walked over to her and knelt down beside of her.

"Shhh! It's okay. It's okay," he whispered, trying to calm her down. Anna said nothing and wept. Tatsumi and Watari walked over to the closet. They moved the chairs aside and opened the door. The man sat on the floor in a frightened daze. The Shinigami looked at him in pity.

"It's okay," Tatsumi said calmly, "We're not going to hurt you." She really gave it her all with the man. The Shinigami had to physically take him out of the closet.

Once he calmed down, the man sat at the kitchen table again. The Shinigami had their own questions for him. They kept Anna away from their suspect in fear that she would harm him again. The boys got the man some tea to help him keep calm.

"Here," Tsuzuki said as he handed the man the cup.

"Thanks," the suspect said nodding. He slowly took a drink. Tsuzuki sat at the table with him.

"How are you involved in all of this mess?" he asked. The man looked down, nervous.

"I'm Anna's cousin," he mumbled. The Shinigami all listened on in shock. This man was Anna's cousin? They suspected that Daisuke was killed by his family all those years ago, but they hadn't thought of children joining the kills.

"What's your name?" Tatsumi asked.

"Ueda Kaoru," he answered.

"Why did you come back here?" Tsuzuki questioned, "Was it to finish the clan's job?" Kaoru shook his head.

"My car broke down a few miles down the road. I just needed a place to stay for the night!" he justified, "Look, I left my dad's family years ago. I changed surname to my mom's maiden name, Ueda, and went to live with my grandparents. I was there the night they killed Uncle Daisuke, but I only tricked Anna into letting us in. I didn't participate in the killing. I only watched, I swear. I'm not lying!" The Shinigami sat silence. He could be telling the truth…

"Why did they kill your uncle?" Hisoka asked. Kaoru shrugged as he shook his head.

"No idea," he replied, "Dad never told me why." He shook his head at his answer. "He just dragged me out of bed and said that we had to do this for grandma," the man went on, "That's all ever cared about! He spent most of my childhood trying to make grandma happy and love him. Dad never cared about me!" Kaoru finished his tea bitterly. That certainly drew up a clear picture of what they were all up against.

After a few more questions, the boys let Kaoru go. He walked into the living room and paused at the front door. He turned and looked into the room. Anna was heading back to Daisuke's office when she pauses and saw her cousin. The woman glared at him. The Shinigami stayed by in case Anna would try to attack him again.

"Cousin, I'm so sorry!" Kaoru pleaded to her. His cousin looked him up and down. Anna took a couple of steps closer to Kaoru. Tsuzuki prepared to break up a confrontation. Instead, Anna spat on her cousin and walked off. Tsuzuki and the boys breathed out in slight relief. At least, tonight they had a new lead after many years of searching for a way to bring down the Eda-Kimoto clan for good.


	21. Change of Hands

_Chapter Twenty: Change of Hands:_

_February 21st, 1977._

Iijiri Kyoko knocked on Kato's door early in the morning. Her neighbor just moved into the village. At the time, the former priest kept to himself; he just wanted to be left alone. Too bad Kyoko didn't see it that way.

"Leave me alone!" Kato yelled inside. Kyoko did the opposite and knocked on the door harder.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" he said at last. The door slid open and Kato looked her up and down. Kyoko looked about his age with her deep royal blue hair in two tight braids. Her hand knit shawl was wrapped tight around her thin body. Her western-style clothes underneath made her look misplaced with the year. Kyoko's height reminded him of him tiny his wife was compared to him. Kato looked at her funny.

"What do you want?" he asked. Kyoko grinned at him. Kato blinked at him.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Just saying hi!" she chirped. Kato didn't seem to believe her. Something told him she wasn't going to leave right away.

"Why?" he asked.

"May I come in?" the woman asked. Kato raised an eyebrow at her.

"Why?" he asked again. Kyoko didn't answer; she just pushed herself past him and went inside.

"Oh come right on in, why don't you?" Kato mumbled sarcastically under his breath. The former priest slid the door shut behind them. Kyoko walked around the house looking around.

_Feel free to leave now!_, Kato thought over and over again. He stared at Kyoko when she turned around to him with a puzzled look on her face.

"What?" the former priest asked. Kyoko shook her head.

"You have no pictures," she pointed out. Kato raised an eyebrow at her.

"So?" he asked.

"That's so sad," she summed up. Kato thought she had just lost her mind.

"And?" he asked.

"Don't you have family?" she asked. Kato glared at her.

"They're dead!" he hissed. Kyoko went serious and lowered her head.

"I'm so sorry…" she mumbled. The former priest leaned against the wall. Kyoko saw the sorrow in his eyes.

_Poor lonely soul_, she thought. Kyoko leaned against the wall with him. Kato didn't look up, yet he somehow knew he had a new ally.

_May 23rd, 2009._

The next morning, Kyoko went out to check the mail. It all looked the same at first, but then she saw it. A deep black envelope with Kato's handwriting on it. Kyoko froze in her place. The old woman ran inside and threw down the rest of the mail on the coffee table. Kyoko looked at the envelope again.

_Oh Iwao_, she thought, _What have you gotten into now?_ Kyoko drew in a deep breath and opened the letter.

Kyoko:

By the time you get this letter, I will be dead. As I told you over the phone, I brought Anna back from the dead. However, Haruka still wants to kill her. I have been guiding Malchik to the truth. That's where you come in.

I'm entrusting you to guide her to the truth. Use anonymous e-mails; Riku-chan can help you with that. I have left you the keys to my apartment and Midori's inheritance money to help you with Malchik. I have written the instructions on the next page. Don't fail us; Malchik needs you.

Iwao

Kyoko stared at the letter for a long while. Her old friend was dead? She always knew his dealings with the Eda-Kimoto clan would get him killed. Now, he was asking her to pick up where he left off. He did so because he knew that he could rely on her. Kyoko drew in another breath. Okay then, that meant one thing however. Good thing the old woman had the keys for that.

Meanwhile the evening, Emiko worked fiercely on her computer. The demon hadn't eaten or slept in days. Hotaru came up behind her girlfriend, embraced the butch demon, and cuddled close. Emiko pushed her off.

"Not now," she mumbled. Hotaru looked at her, pouting. Emiko sensed that she wasn't leaving. She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"What, Hoto-chan?" the butch demon asked. The loli demon pouted as she shuffled her feet.

"Well…" she mumbled. Hotaru tried to fit her needs into words. Emiko turned and stared at her.

"Speak!" she barked, "I'm busy right now!" Hotaru swallowed and trembled.

"I miss you so much," she murmured at first. She paused and clinched her fists tight. Emiko waited.

"What is it?" she pressed. Hotaru shut her eyes tightly.

"We hadn't had sex in a long while!" she blurted out. Her cheeks turned a bright red after saying that. Emiko's face didn't change.

"Is that all?" she asked. Her girlfriend nodded quickly. Emiko gave her a kind, little smile.

"Sweetie," she addressed, "We will have sex when I am finished with my work." Hotaru looked at her, unconvinced.

"When will you be finished?" she asked. Emiko went quiet. Her girlfriend sighed and blew up her bangs annoyed.

"Figures," she mumbled. The loli demon walked away disappointed. Emiko sighed and went back to work. Truth was, back when she was trying to overthrow Hell to free the innocents, Emiko and her troops made a pact to deny themselves pleasures such as smoking, drinking, drugs, and sex. She wanted them fully focused on the battles ahead. However, that was years ago. Emiko began to feel the effects of desire racing in her mind. She tried to fight it off long enough to keep researching information on the Eda-Kimoto clan and how to overthrow Lucifer again. Over time, it began to sink in. Emiko's mind wandered back to the bedroom. The butch demon shook her head hard.

_No!_, she thought, _I need focus on the mission!_ Emiko pushed herself to keep working. However, the harder she worked, the worse she couldn't focus. The demon's mind kept coming back to Hotaru's bare pale skin. Her innocence hid her mischief well. She missed hearing Hotaru crying out in pleasure. Oh, the sweet taste of her…

Emiko shut her eyes tightly. She tried to block it out, but the images got stronger, more vivid. Finally, the demon resolved to the only known way to get rid of temptation.

The butch demon shut everything down and got up from her deck. She walked up the stairs to her and Hotaru's bedroom and slowly pushed open the door. Hotaru sat on the bed waiting. Emiko stood in the doorway looking in. Her girlfriend raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yes?" she asked. Emiko walked over to the bed and crawled on. The butch demon leaned in and kissed her girl on the lips. Hotaru didn't bother to resist. The kiss increased from there. Emiko lightly pushed Hotaru back onto the bed, but the loli demon had plans of her own tonight. Hotaru quickly flipped her girlfriend on her back and climbed on top. Emiko looked up surprised.

"Hoto-chan…" she said in a gasp. Hotaru sat up grinning as she lightly put a finger to her lips.

"Uh-uh-uh," the loli demon whispered, "I'm in control tonight! You just lie there and enjoy yourself!" Emiko quickly nodded.

"Okay, take me!" she said. Hotaru grinned wickedly.

"That's better," she cooed. The loli demon leaned down and kissed her girlfriend again. She slipped her tongue into her beloved's mouth while she slowly rolled off her white tank top. Emiko lifted her arms as she did so. Hotaru broke off the kiss to get an eyeful of the butch demon's small yet full chest. Lucky for them both, Emiko never wore bras. Hotaru cheeks turned bright red.

"Beautiful!" she breathed out in a whisper. Hotaru felt herself getting hot and wet in her own panties. She began breathing heavily as she slowly slid off her black baby doll dress. Emiko stared on in delight at her lover's black strapless bra and panties. Hotaru knelt down and kissed her lover again. Emiko reached up and slowly unhooked Hotaru's bra. She trembled at Emiko's touch. Once the bra came off, the butch demon tossed it to the floor.

Hotaru slowly reached down to Emiko's tight black jeans and playfully tugged on them. Her lover moaned loudly in her mouth. Hotaru quickly undid the black and spike-jeweled belt followed by the jeans themselves. Emiko felt herself getting wet at Hoto-chan's touch. Her girlfriend smiled in satisfaction. She slowly rolled off her beloved's jeans as Emiko trembled with heated sweat. With the jeans thrown to the floor piled on the other clothes, the lovely demons were in panties.

Emiko reached down tenderly and grabbed a hold of Hotaru's lacy black panties. She yanked them off as the loli demon's hands strayed down to the butch demon's small breasts. Emiko squealed as she squeezed on them. She spread her legs while Hotaru's panties ended up on the floor. The loli demon took her girlfriend's cotton blue and white panties off. Hotaru slowly began kissing down her neck. Her beloved whimpered and moaned aloud.

"Oh yes!" she whimpered. Hotaru began licking and nibbling on the skin slowly enough to enjoy the taste. Emiko screamed aloud and shut her eyes. She began stroking her girlfriend's long, loose black hair. The loli demon kissed down to Emiko's breasts and started sucking on them.

"Yes!" her cried, "More, more!" Her lover was more than happy to comply. After a few more sucks, Hotaru kept licking and kissing downwards until she came to her final destination and slipped her tongue inside. Emiko screamed and arched her back.

"Oh yes!" she screamed. "Hoto-chan! Oh!" Hotaru licked faster and added in her fingers into the mix. The heat and moisture greeted her with ecstasy. Emiko's head swam with intense pleasure.

"Hoto-chan!" she yelled. "I love you! I love you! I love you!" A sea of bright red of passion washed over them intensely. Neither one wanted it to end. Emiko came in a high flood when Hotaru gave her favorite place one last, big stroke.

"Hoto-chan, I love you so much!" she screamed. Hotaru licked up her sweet prize. Her lover whimpered and moaned with a red face.

"Oh wow!" Emiko yelped, "You're so great!" Once she licked the last drop, Hotaru slid upwards and lied down next to the butch demon. They smiled at each other warmly. Hotaru lightly tapped Emiko on nose. She lightly giggled at her.

"Good enough?" the loli demon asked. Emiko gave her a little kiss. Hotaru kissed her back. The butch demon gave her a sexy little smile.

"Shit yeah!" she replied. Hotaru giggled as her fingers tangled in her lover's long orange hair. They fell asleep in each other's arms. Emiko felt much better; maybe she could focus much better on her work now.


	22. Lost Tapes

_Chapter Twenty-One: Lost Tapes:_

_March 4th, 1983._

Three-day-old Anna slept peacefully open drawer Daisuke used for her since he didn't have the money to buy a decent crib. Daisuke sat on his bed watching her. Eighteen years old with a baby. He lied back on the bed and sighed. Suddenly, he heard the door open. The boy slowly lifted his head to see his roommate walking into their dorm.

"Hi," he said sounding bummed out. His roommate tilted his head at him.

"What's the matter, Dai?" he asked. The other boy sat up and nudged his head over to baby Anna. The roommate looked at her.

"Oh," he mumbled, "That bad?" Daisuke nodded and sighed.

"I don't know what to do with her or myself," he spoke up, "I'm just stuck." His roommate looked at him in sympathy. He walked over to the bed, sat down, and patted Daisuke on the back.

"Have you talked to anybody?" he asked. Daisuke looked at him with a puzzled look on his face.

"Like whom?" the young father asked. The roommate shrugged at him.

"I don't know," he said, "Just anyone." The other boy shook his head.

"My problems are too big for that," Daisuke replied.

"Ah," the roommate answered. Then an idea came into his head.

"Make a journal," he suggested. Daisuke looked at him oddly.

"What?" he asked.

"Sure," the roommate said nodding.

"How will that help?" the other boy asked. His roommate nudged him on the arm.

"It's better than nothing, yes?" he replied. Daisuke thought about that for a moment.

"Guess it wouldn't hurt," the boy mumbled. His roommate smiled and nodded.

"See? There you go!" he said, "What would you do without me?" Daisuke gave him a little smile.

_May 23rd, 2009._

Anna typed fiercely on her laptop. She still burned in anger from last night. They let Kaoru go? He should have been punished! Not much for her to do than to do random research on the computer. Better than self-harm or harming someone else, she reasoned. Today, Anna looked up panic disorders. She just thinks up random topics and looks them up; just anything to keep herself sane enough not to kill anyone. Anna kept typing until she heard a knock on her door. Agitation crossed her mind.

"What?!" she snapped.

"It's only me," Seita said on the other side of the door. Anna calmed down as she began to return back to reality.

"What do you want?" the woman asked.

"You've got a package," the boy said. Anna became perplexed. _Who else_ knew she was alive?

"Why?" Anna asked.

"How should I know?" Seita asked apathetic, "There's no return address." She got up from her desk and opened the door. Seita stood in the doorway with a big cardboard box in his hands. Anna stared at the box as her "guest" offered it up to her.

"Take it," he said, "I'm sick of holding it." Anna raised an eyebrow at him. She'll have to work on him a little bit more, but right now she had to see what was in the box. Anna slowly took the box and Seita walked away to his room. The woman looked at the package in her hands. Seita was right; there was no return address. Who sent this and why? What's in the box?

Anna listened to it closely. No ticking inside; good, at least it's not going to explode. Still could be something deadly inside. Anna sat the package on the bed. Was this a clue or a trap? Did the anonymous e-mailer send her this package? Anna had a determined look in her eyes as she took out her Hello Kitty pen and clicked it open. The woman dragged the pen right down the middle of the sealed entrance and ripped the box right open. The box had dozens of unlabeled cassette tapes inside. Confusion washed over Anna's face.

_Tapes?_, she thought, _What the hell?_ The woman took out one and stared at it. "Play me!" it seemed to say. Well, she had no choice. Anna dug through the rest of tapes until she found the player.

_Perfect!_, Anna thought as she smiled in success. The woman set up shop and hit play.

Tape Entry #1:

March 4th, 1983. I don't know where to begin on this, but my name is Kimoto Daisuke. I'm eighteen years old and a single dad. My daughter, Anna, was brought to me three days ago by hospital officials from Sapporo, Hokkaido. As you can expect, I don't know what to do. That's not my only problem, however.

-He sighed on tape-

I don't know… This was my roommate's idea. I'm more lost doing this than before I started. Still, I have to keep going. So here goes.

My life is a mess; I have many dark secrets.

-He took a long pause on the recording-

It's my family.

-His voice dropped into a whisper-

They are the Eda-Kimoto clan. Yes, that's right. I am a kitsune-tsukai descended from a long line of tsukai. My heritage dates back to the Nara period as I have been told many times. We employ foxes to give us our powers and do our bidding in exchange for giving bribes like food, protection, or sex as a price. According to our family history, our ancestor, Sen, was to marry this farmer's beautiful daughter. Her name escapes me at the moment, but she was always a sickly girl. Many thought that she would die soon. Afraid for her life, Sen desperately searched for a way to save his fiancée. That's where the story changes.

Sen made a pact with a powerful kitsune. This kitsune would save his wife-to-be if every wave forty within generations; a daughter would be given to the great kitsune as payment. Sen agreed and thus the birth of our bloodline. We started out pure at first, but somewhere in the Meji Era, out family became corrupt with the taste blood and power.

End Tape Entry #1

Anna sat on the futon startled. A daughter of every wave of forty in the generations was to be given to the great kitsune? Was that why her powers were sealed off? Something about Daisuke's words troubled her to her very core. He sounded… a little happy about his background, almost subconsciously bragging about it.

The woman lied back on her futon. That tape opened doors to so much more. This revelation explained the dreams she had three years prior to Daisuke's death. She could remember them so clearly to this day. He always stood naked before a fire with his hands soaked in blood and big, blank eyes. He had tears streaming down his face. Until now, Anna couldn't understand any of it for many years.


	23. Broken Cherry

_Chapter Twenty-Two: Broken Cherry:_

_June 7th, 2000._

Anna couldn't sleep and the summer night didn't help. Eight months and she still was not used to San Diego. On nights like this, she missed her old life. Things were more simple and innocent then. This wasn't her choice after all; she decided that she might as well make the most of it. Sleeping would help. Too bad that wasn't working. There was only one way to fix this.

Anna crawled out of bed and crept down to the living room. The whole time, she had to make sure that her aunt was asleep. She navigated herself to the closet once she made it to her destination. Anna used the moonlight outside to find the old record player inside. Once she found it, Anna quietly pulled it out and carried the player to the center of the living room.

Anna walked over to Allison's desk and pulled open the bottom drawer. The girl dug through the records until she found "Don't Dream it's Over" by Crowded House on vinyl. A bit of nostalgia came onto her face. She really needed the music tonight. Anna carried the record to the player, put it on, and lied down on the floor. The girl lightly shut her eyes to the soft 80's pop music streaming from the speaker.

"It'll be okay," she would tell herself as the music played her to sleep. Crowded House was the only thing that made her sane enough to function in life.

_May 23rd, 2009._

Anna came back to earth when she heard the door open. She looked up and saw Tsuzuki standing in the doorway.

"Hi," she said in slight distress. The Shinigami noticed her tone.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Anna sat straight up.

"Got a box of tapes Papa made years ago, today," she said, "No return address." Tsuzuki looked at her for a moment.

"Really?" he asked. The woman nodded. The Shinigami stared at her.

"That bad?" he asked. Anna reached over to the tape player and hit eject. She flipped over the tape and hit play. Tsuzuki was quiet when the tape was finished.

"Could I get a copy of that?" he asked last. Anna gave a weak shrug.

"Sure," she said, "Take what you want."

"What's on the other tapes?" the Shinigami asked. Her face became rather grim.

"It's a tricky thing," Anna replied, "I don't want to hear anymore, but I want to know what else is on the tapes." The Shinigami eyed her oddly.

"So what do you want to do?" he asked. Anna thought about that for a moment. Determination filled her eyes again.

"I want to listen to another one," she said at last.

"You sure?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Yes," Anna said quickly, "I just have to know the truth."

"Alright," the Shinigami said.

"But first…" she spoke up. Anna rose to her feet and walked over to her desk. She opened the drawer and reached inside. The woman drew out a pen and sticky notepad.

"We better label the tapes," Anna went on as she closed the drawer, "Keeps the confusion at bay."

"Right," Tsuzuki agreed. Anna ejected the first tape and labeled it. The Shinigami took it to play for the boys later. Anna dug in the box and drew out another tape. She put it in and pressed play.

Tape Entry #3,040:

October 28th, 1999. My name is Kimoto Daisuke. I am thirty-four years old and a single dad. For sixteen years now, I have been recording this journal. I have revealed some unsavory truths on countless numbers of tapes. I'm not proud of them, but they had to come out. I didn't choose my fate or conditions. My biggest apologizes go to Anna-chan. She didn't deserve any of my Hell. I… I never wanted this for her. She deserves a normal and happy life. Sadly, that won't happen for her all because of our heritage. We are all cursed because of it.

One day, Anna-chan will hear these tapes. When she does, I will regret everything that I have ever recorded on them. I know, however, I can't keep her innocent forever. Anna-chan would have to learn the truth sometime.

For that, I am so sorry, Anna-chan.

End of Tape #3,040

Anna felt the old pain building up in her soul again. Ten years had frozen up her emotions with long periods of isolation. Anna began softly singing Crowded House's "Don't Dream it's Over" to herself in English while out in a daze. Tsuzuki sat there and let her get it out of her system. He had discovered over these past couple of weeks through thought and observation, she was close to a mirror image of himself. Both seemed to be hiding some sort of a darkness that lost innocence brought with it. They hid it in different ways, however. Tsuzuki had his darkness under an overkill of goofy-happiness. Anna built a stoic glass box around her darkness and isolated herself from everyone else as a result.

Tsuzuki made up his mind at long last. He was going to help Anna end this ten-year-old nightmare for good. For now, Tsuzuki sat beside Anna and waited for her to come back. He lightly put his arm around her out of sympathy as he did so.


	24. Puzzle Pieces

_Chapter Twenty-Three: Puzzle Pieces:_

_October 1st, 783._

Sen and his fiancée made it all the way to Heijo-Kyo. The fiancée's health got so worse each day that the herbs weren't working anymore. Despite making the wedding an earlier date, death still stalked the young couple. Sen wanted to travel alone for the cure, but the bride-to-be insisted on coming with him.

"I want my last moments to be with you!" she pleaded. Sen couldn't argue with her and so the bride-to-be went with him. The trip took a week and a half. The bride-to-be couldn't sleep well because her fever grew worse. She ended up bed-ridden for most of the trip. Even the doctors in Heijo-Kyo couldn't save Sen's beloved fiancée. The young farmer had no choice but to admit that his bride-to-be would die before the wedding.

To clear his head, Sen took a walk around the city. The young farmer became thirsty and started looking for a booth that sold drinks. Nothing caught his eye at first, but then he heard a soft bell ringing in the background. Curious, Sen followed the sound. He walked nearly out of the city before he found the source. The farmer boy came to a soy milk booth. This tent looked rather odd. The bright colors made it look like a circus tent.

"Huh?" Sen asked, "Why is this out in the middle of nowhere?"

"Because, I like the quiet," a voice answered, "Helps me do business this way." Sen quickly looked up and saw a young girl peeking out from the stall. She looked rather cute with her elegant round face and ivory-toned skin. One could guess that she was about twelve or thirteen years old with the youthfulness to her eyes and facial features. She didn't look native Japanese with her deep amber eyes and simple clothing. Sen looked curious and intrigued while the young girl looked at him.

"You look thirsty, sir," she said properly, "Have some soy milk." Sen looked at her bucket amazed. That milk looked so good right now.

"But… I don't have any money…" the farmer said. The girl tilted her head at him.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Sen looked around for a bit and sighed. Might as well say it; she'll be dead soon anyway.

"I spent it all," Sen answered. He leaned in close to the girl and she did likewise with him.

"My fiancée is dying," the farmer whispered, "We've tried everything, but it's no use. She's going to die soon." Though her face didn't show it, the vender was plotting in her mind. This young girl was sick of just living among the humans and wanted more of an excitement in her life. However like this milk, she had to sell it good.

"Perhaps…" the girl began to offer. Sen looked up at her.

"Perhaps what?" he asked. The girl grinned wickedly.

"Perhaps… I could help you and your fiancée …" she purposed. Disbelief covered Sen's face.

"How?" he challenged. The girl folded her arms across her chest.

"Come and take a walk with me," she said. The farmer raised an eyebrow at her.

"Why should I?" he questioned. The girl climbed out of her booth. Sen was surprised to find that her head only came up to his chest. She looked up at him smiling.

"Because," she replied, "Your beloved is sick and you are desperate, am I right?" Sen stared at her deeply before he lowered his gaze.

"Alright," he said at last, "Tell me what to do." The girl smiled like her true form.

"Well first," she said, "Take that walk with me." Sen nodded reluctantly.

"Right," his new "friend" said in a soft voice. Then she took him by the arm and led him into the woods.

_May 23rd, 2009._

Tsuzuki returned to Ju-Oh-Cho and played the two tapes for the crew. Coupled with Watari's research, the enemy came forth. Everyone met in the conference room to discuss what they had now. Gushoshin played a copy Daisuke's very first entry for them. When it ended, the overview began.

Meanwhile, Hotaru came into Emiko's office and playfully covered her eyes. Her girlfriend giggled.

"Yes, Hoto-chan?" she asked. The loli demon released her and leaned on her back.

"You're in a good mood this evening," she remarked. Emiko grinned and turned around.

"Of course," she said. The butch demon leaned in closer as Hotaru leant her her ear.

"I have found it!" Emiko announced. Her girlfriend looked at her oddly.

"Found what?" she asked. The butch demon held up her hand.

"Call Kazue and Mike in here first," she said.

"Why?" Hotaru asked. Emiko rubbed her on her hand.

"Just do it," she said.

"Okay," the loli demon said. She let go of Emiko and disappeared down the hall. The loli demon reappeared with the other two demons. Mike stood in the hall entry with another woman. Everything from her long, messy dark brown hair with drooping white fuzzy bear ears to her wrinkled pajamas said, "I want to go back to bed!" Mike looked around as Hotaru walked back over to her girlfriend.

"Okay, what is this all about?" he asked.

"Yeah, make this quick!" the third woman snapped, "I'd rather be asleep right now!" Emiko placed her hands on her knees.

"Get this," she said as she woke up her laptop from the screensaver.

-Shinigami-

"The origins of the Eda-Kimoto clan began during the Nara Period," Tatsumi established, "The farmer, Sen, made a contract with a kitsune out of desperation for his fiancée's life."

"In exchange for the fiancée's poor health, every forty generations, a daughter is to be given over to the kitsune herself," Watari added on.

-Demons-

"What does that mean?" Hotaru asked. Emiko smiled at her housemates.

"Ah," she said, "The kitsune's own power to the chosen girl manifests inside of her. From there, the kitsune slowly takes over the girl's soul to merge into one. The contract with the chosen witch stays valid until the handler dies. After that, the kitsune waits for forty more generations to pass before merging with another soul of her choice."

-Shinigami-

"The kitsune must have chosen Anna's soul to fulfill the bargain," Tsuzuki reasoned, "Daisuke didn't want that for his daughter, so he used a sealing spell to lock away her powers for her to live a normal life."

"But why her?" Konoe asked, "Why not one of her cousins instead? Daisuke wanted her to be normal after all."

-Demons-

Emiko put up her hands in a shrug. "Who can say?" she asked, "But, I've only gotten started!" The third female demon raised an eyebrow at her.

"There's more?" she asked, bored.

"Of course, dear Kazue!" the leader said, "Each handler has a lesser kitsune of their own."

"They do?" Mike asked.

-Shinigami-

"However, they are weaker than the original," Watari explained, "They are only mere copies that will break down and die over time." Tsuzuki and Hisoka looked on confused.

"But don't the tsukai die with them if that happens?" Hisoka asked.

"Yes," Older Gushoshin replied, "But during the Meji Era, the Eda clan found a way to keep from dying out so quickly." The Shinigami looked at him.

"How?" Tsuzuki asked in serious tone. Watari's face went rather grim.

"Human souls," he answered in a matching tone. Shock bitch slapped everyone in their faces.

-Demons-

"So that's why the Eda-Kimoto has been killing people for all of these years!" Hotaru gasped.

"Exactly," Emiko replied.

"Explains what the Ju-Oh-Cho is so interested in the clan," Mike reasoned.

"But what's with the burns on the victims' wrists?" Kazue asked. Emiko narrowed her eyes at him as she prepared to answer.

-Shinigami-

"The burns are used to tag the victims' souls as property to the clan," Watari answered, "Once the mark is burned into the skin, the victim's soul does not come to Meifu like it is supposed to. Instead, the copy of the kitsune eats and traps the soul in its body, giving more life to the copy and its tsukai."

"So Anna's soul would have been food for the kitsune if I'd hadn't given her the Hell Stone?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Exactly," Tatsumi answered, "You saved her soul from being devoured by the clan's power." Tsuzuki's eyes lit up after hearing that one.

"Oh so does that mean I'm off the hook now?" he asked in excitement. Tatsumi and Konoe glared at him coldly. "We know you did not just ask that!" their eyes seemed to say. Tsuzuki began to shrink away as he reverted to puppy mode.

"Or not…" he whimpered in misery. Everyone focused back on work. A thought then crossed Tsuzuki's mind.

"Hey, why did Anna's burn marks react to Hana's burns?" he asked.

-Demons-

"The burns are trying to draw her soul to the tsukai's kitsune," Emiko explained, "But, Daisuke's seal is resisting the marks."

"Because of this struggle, Anna felt her wrists burning," Mike added on.

"Exactly," the butch demon summed up. A thought came into Hotaru's mind.

-Shinigami-

"Kato-san must have known all of this," Hisoka pointed out, "But why does he care about Anna-san so much and what's his connection to the Eda-Kimoto family?" When no one had an answer, Konoe turned to Tsuzuki and Hisoka.

"Tsuzuki, Kurosaki, go back to Kimoto manor," he ordered. "Stay with Anna-san through this whole case. She may be the key to stopping her family."

"Yes sir!" the boys said.

-Demons-

"So what should we do?" Kazue asked in apathy. Emiko rose to her feet.

"What else?" she asked, "Go and pay dear Anna visit!" Kazue sneered at her.

"Do _we_ have to?" she asked. Emiko sighed and shook his head.

"Fine," she said, "You can go back to bed." The demon grinned.

"Sweet," Kazue said. Then she hurried back to bed. The other demons turned to each other.

"Ready to do this?" the leader asked.

"Yeah," Mike answered. Hotaru nodded.

"Okay," the leader said. "Let's do this." They teleported to Kimoto manor.


	25. Daisuke

_Chapter Twenty-Four: Daisuke:_

_August 1st, 1988._

Daisuke sat at the desk that Kato let him use in his room. He had just hit stop on the tape recorder after recording another journal entry. The twenty-three-year-old sat lost in his thoughts. He held a small silver charm bracelet in his hands._ It had been so long_, he thought.

Daisuke came back to earth when he heard the door slide open. He looked up and saw little Anna in the doorway. She stared at him in silent wonder as her father stared at her likewise.

_May 23rd, 2009._

While the Shinigami and demons were all talking about the case at hand, Anna played another tape of her father's.

Tape Entry #211:

August 1st, 1988. My name is Kimoto Daisuke. I am twenty-three years old and a single father. Summer is here and that means Anna-chan's out of school now. Uh-oh, guess I'll have to keep that little bit busy for the whole break.

-He laughs-

This will be another good summer. I hadn't had this much fun since the 70's. Great times they were! Now…

-He pauses-

All I have is the memories. I see them in my Anna-chan. Seeing her little face reminds me that life can be okay at times. Anna-chan… My little soldier… She's become my motivation to survive my bloodline. My little solder…

End of Tape Entry #211

Anna sat quiet in the dark. His little soldier; that's what Daisuke called her, that's how he saw her. Anna asked him why he called her that the day before he died. Daisuke gave her a kind, little smile.

"Because you keep me sane," he reasoned, "You manage to keep me together when everything looks bleak. When I see your face, I slowly raise out of my black hole of self-pity. That's was makes you my little soldier."

Anna lied back onto her futon. She held her left wrist in her vision. A silver charm bracelet hung around it loosely. The Kanji for long life was in tiny blocks all around and tiny chains held them together. Anna narrowed her eyes on the bracelet on her slim wrist.

_Papa…_, she thought as she drifted back to that summer night in 1988.

-Flashback-

Little Anna stood in the doorway of Daisuke's room staring as her papa stared back at her.

"Papa," the little girl said, "What are you doing?" Daisuke gave her a little smile as he completely turned around to her.

"Anna-chan, could you do something for me?" he asked. The little girl tilted her head at him.

"What is it?" she asked. Her father sat there bravely. Could he do this with her? Seemed like a huge request for such a small child, but yet Anna seemed so strong. She could take this; he knew that she could. Daisuke drew in a deep breath.

"Can you be daddy's little soldier?" he asked. Little Anna blinked at him.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Daisuke opened the desk drawer behind him and reached inside.

"I need you to take care of something for me," he said. Little Anna looked on at her dad.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Come here and hold out your left wrist," Daisuke told her calmly. Anna smiled at him cheerfully.

"Okay," she said. Then the girl held her left arm forward and walked over to her father. Daisuke drew out the silver bracelet from the drawer. When his daughter got close enough, he clasped it around her tiny wrist and fit it to a smaller size. Anna watched him as he do so. Daisuke sat back smiling.

"Now, Anna-chan," he said, "The bracelet belonged to someone very to dear to me. Can I trust you to be my little soldier and take good care of it for me?" Anna stared on surprised at first. Her dad just gave her a valuable treasure and wanted her to take care of it? Anna nodded at him with a smile.

"Yes Papa!" she chirped, "I'll be your little soldier!"

"Very good, Anna-chan!" he said relived. He lightly patted his daughter on the head. Anna smiled at him upbeat as she began her duty as papa's little soldier from that point onwards.

-Present Day-

Anna slowly shut her eyes as she stared at her bracelet still.

_His little soldier…_, she thought tired, _Papa…_

Anna would have gone to sleep if she hadn't heard the doorbell ring. The woman quickly woke back up and sat up. Tsuzuki already checked on her for the night. Rihoko had a night class tonight. Yoko-chan and Seita were in their rooms for the night. Maybe the killer?

Anna went into the kitchen and got the broom. She couldn't be too careful after she _and_ Daisuke got killed. Once armed, Anna slowly made her way to the front door. She waited and listened for any moments. At first, the woman heard nothing, but she still listened closer. Suddenly, she heard a shuffle outside. Anna prepared to attack and opened the door.

She looked around and saw nothing. Anna looked puzzled and kept up her guard all at once. The killer could have found another way to break into the manor.

_Where did that bastard go?_, she thought. Anna clutched the boom handle tightly.

Suddenly, she felt a tight pressure on her neck in the dark. Anna dropped the broom and tried to fight off her attacker in vain. The last thing she could remember was sinking into a colder darkness.


	26. EdaKimoto

_Chapter Twenty-Five: Eda-Kimoto:_

_May 23rd, 2009, 7:00 p.m._

Haruka waited in her darkened living room. She had just sent out another Hell Butterfly to spy on Anna. Tonight was perfect for the kill.

The old woman looked out the window when she heard a tapping noise. The butterfly just returned. The old woman smirked as she slowly opened the window. Her agent gently landed on her waiting finger. The butterfly made a soft whining noise before breaking down into ash. The old woman smiled at the results. Haruka created another Hell Butterfly and set out.

_May 23rd, 2009, 9:00 p.m._

"The Eda-Kimoto clan had a long history," Haruka said, "Sen and his fiancée are our parents. Sen made a pact with a kitsune to save his beloved; that much is true. True every forty generations she picks a daughter's soul to merge with. However, there is more to know about us." The old woman looked through the various knives on the coffee table she brought with her tonight.

"Oh yes," she went on, "We are a complicated family. Not many understand us; can't or don't want to, who can say? Many hate us, many fear us, few love us. They can say what they will about us; we will choose to exist." Haruka selected her favorite knife. The moonlight reflected so well on the blade as it sang to her tonight.

"Ah yes," she said, "We were pure at first. That's how most darkness starts after all. Like I said, we are complicated. Everything was good with us in the beginning. Our ancestors used the kitsune to do good; innocent, no harm done. They healed their fellow villagers from illness and death, saved them from drought, kept everyone fed, and gave justice. The villagers were very grateful; they helped out our ancestors they were in great need. So what happened, you ask? They were dying too quickly.

"You see, in between generations, we are all given copies of that mighty kitsune. These copies are weaker than her and die too easily. Most of them died at twenty-eight because of it. We all tried in the past not to die off so quickly. We tried everything! You name it, we went for it. All results ended in failure."

She broke into a small laugh. "How ironic; great healers and idols of the village that can't even save themselves! Heh, that is so sad, wouldn't you agree, Anna?"

Haruka looked out of the corner of her eye at her victim. The younger woman sat in the big black and gold chair near the window. Haruka had put knock-out dust in the Hell Butterfly and sent it to Kimoto Manor. Now, her grandmother held her still and silent telepathically in the chair. Anna stared on at her with hate in her eyes. Haruka ignored the look and kept talking.

"We struggled with our gift and curse," she said to her granddaughter, "Death always stalked us. Sure, it was inevitable, but too soon for us. We wanted to live out the normal span of life. That was a struggle until the Meji era." Haruka looked at the knife blade in the moonlight with a twisted smile on her face.

"It's a funny story about the solution to keep us alive," she went on, "Our ancestor, Touya, had fallen in love with this young woman named Arisu. He wanted to court her so badly. However, he was a shy boy. He couldn't gather up the courage to even ask her out. So Touya decided to watch over and follow Arisu around. He watched his infatuation grow up into a beautiful young woman. Arisu had grown so beautiful that it caught the attention of other men in Kyoto, much to Touya's displeasure. However, he still loved Arisu.

"One evening, Arisu was going home. Touya watched her walk up to her front door. It looked like a normal night once more. Suddenly, a strange man wandered over to the young woman. He tried to seduce Arisu, but she refused because she was to marry a nobleman in three nights and wanted to stay a virgin until then. This other man got angry and tried to rape Arisu. She fought back in vain. Touya couldn't stomach his object of desire about to be violated. He had to do something before his beloved died.

"Touya summoned his kitsune to the rescue. The kitsune did the job _too_ well; it killed both the would-be rapist and Arisu herself. When it had returned to its master, Touya raced over to Arisu's dead body. He mourned in horror at what he had done. He didn't mean to kill her, really, but then something strange happened.

"His kitsune had come back out on its own and started eating Arisu and the attacker's souls. Touya was appalled at first.

"'Konni, don't!' he yelled. The kitsune didn't listen; he just kept eating. Suddenly, an ecstatic feeling came over young Touya. You see, he was close to dying in three weeks. He could feel it all over his body in his heart and lungs. However, Touya was healthy as a normal twenty-year-old. He couldn't grasp the situation at the time; I don't think he ever could.

"By the time the kitsune had finished eating; Touya's health went back to normal. It was then we all resorted to human souls for survival." Haruka then noticed that Anna walked to talk now. She raised an eyebrow at her granddaughter.

"I'm sorry, what?" she asked a sweet mocking tone. Anna tried to open her mouth, but it was forced shut with Haruka's powers. The old woman smirked as she decided to humor her granddaughter. Haruka slowly removed the hold over Anna's mouth. The younger woman breathed out hard.

"So you decided that murder was the only way to survive?!" Anna snapped. Haruka smiled and shook her head.

"Not always dearest," she replied, "Since Touya's discovery, we only took dying souls that wanted to die. Soon, our kitsune wanted more. How could we deny our beloved pets? So our hunts began. However, some of us were just disappointments, like your father." Anna glared at her coldly.

"Papa was a good man!" she declared. Haruka snorted at her.

"Your father was a failure," she argued, "I taught him the family's witchcraft and beliefs. Did he learn it? He threw it all away in shame! When your father saw his brothers and I kill a woman for our kitsune, he ran off in the woods to vomit. Your father refused to kill anyone for his kitsune. He finally couldn't take anymore of our proud family and ran away from home." Her granddaughter sneered at her.

"Proud family?!" she snapped, "You're nothing but a bunch of murderers!" Haruka became angry and telepathically slapped Anna in the face. The younger woman yelped in pain.

"No!" the old hag snapped, "You don't know anything! Your father blinded you from your true potential. He wouldn't teach you witchcraft. Your father was scared of you because _you_ inherited the kitsune instead of my more worthy grandchildren! You are a waste! How pathetic! You're just like Iwao!"

"Don't limp Kato-san into this fucking mess!" Anna yelled.

"Oh, but I must!" Haruka insisted, "Iwao's grandmother is my grandmother's cousin!" Anna's eyes widened. The old woman smirked at her.

"Oh yes," she went on, "My family took in many orphans and runaways in case we died before we made the kills. Mimiko was a pregnant teenage runaway when my great-great uncle found her. Instead of killing her like he had planned to do originally, my great-great uncle took the silly girl in. She was happy with her new family until she learned the truth. Yet, Mimiko stayed because of her daughter. When the daughter was twelve, she and her mother ran away from our home because of a man. Years later, Kato, my sister, and I were born. So yes, your father and Iwao are all bound into our blood, their choice or not!" Haruka held the silver snake decorated knife to her side.

"And now," the old lady said, "You know about our family's blood-stained curse. So, you must die as the sacrifice to my kitsune!" Anna tightly shut her eyes as her grandmother raised her knife high above her head.


	27. Cursed

_Chapter Twenty-Six: Cursed:_

_May 23rd, 2009, 10:00 p.m._

Tsuzuki and Hisoka appeared in front of Kimoto Manor. Right off the bat, they could sense something off.

"Anna's in trouble," Tsuzuki whispered.

"Yes," Hisoka said. Suddenly, the boys felt someone else present. They looked and saw the demon trio appearing next to them. Emiko looked at the Shinigami and grinned.

"Hey guys," she said, waving at them. Hisoka glared at them.

"What do you want?" he growled at the ladies and gentleman. Emiko shrugged off the hostility.

"Now, now," she said, "We're all here for the same reason. Can we at least be civil for one moment to save Anna? Something tells me that we don't have much time." The butch demon had a point there. Tsuzuki nodded.

"Alright," he said. "Let's go!" They vanished into the manor. Haruka was just about to stab Anna when she sensed someone in the building. A smirk came onto her face.

"Oh how cute, you're friends are here to rescue you," she said.

"Huh?" the younger woman asked as she jerked her eyes open at those words. Haruka smiled at her granddaughter wickedly as she leaned into her ear.

"I'll deal with you later," the old woman hissed. Haruka walked to the doorway and found the rescue party standing before her.

"Well, well, well, Shinigami _and_ demons," she said, "This is rather unexpected."

"Let Anna go!" Tsuzuki snapped. Haruka shook her head smiling.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," she said, "She has the kitsune locked inside of her and I'm going to kill her for it to save the bloodline!"

"Save the blo—" Tsuzuki began to ask. Then, it donned him, "You're all dying, aren't you? Your kitsune are rejecting souls now?" When Anna heard that, shock and anger swept over her.

_So that's why she had papa killed!_, she thought. Haruka glared at them with her knife still in hand.

"Then we'll take her from you!" Emiko yelled as she took a step forward. The old woman snorted at them.

"I really don't have time for this!" she hissed, "So I'll make it quick." Haruka held up two fingers to her chest and began to chant under her breath. Thin white clouds formed beside of her. Tsuzuki reached into his coat with the intent to attack. The white-silver kitsune floated by her master.

"Yes mistress," she said.

"Shiroko, take care of our annoying guests for me," the old lady commanded her.

"Of course, mistress!" the kitsune said. Shiroko flew to attack as the icy fire raged in her eyes. Tsuzuki drew out his fuda while the demons chanted their own spells. Tsuzuki chanted his spell to crush Shiroko, but she dodged the first with such grace.

"What the hell?!" he blurted out. Haruka smirked at them.

"Fuda won't work," she blurted out, "This kitsune has had a little more experience!" Shiroko sailed closer to bite the Shinigami. Her fangs resembled icicles in a cave. Mike quickly pushed him out of the way and took a bite to the shoulder.

"You okay?" Tsuzuki asked.

"It's fine," Mike said through clenched teeth, "It's just a scratch, but my shoulder feels so heavy. Finish them!" Haruka laughed at the results.

"Oh my, Shiroko just gave you her icy kiss," she said, "I wonder how long before the ice takes over you?" Mike sucked in a mouthful of air as the ice began to spread on his shoulder. Emiko stepped up to attack.

"Hoto-chan, tend to his wound," she commanded her girlfriend.

"Roger!" the loli demon answered. Emiko turned back to the old lady and the kitsune. She drew her fingers into a circle and a hazy green light began to form around them.

"St. Mary lend me your strength and come forth!" the demon chanted. The light intensified into flames around the circle. Emiko turned to Tsuzuki as sweat ran down her face.

"Now, Tsuzuki!" she yelled, "I can only hold it for so long!"

"Right!" the Shinigami agreed. The man drew out his fuda and tried his chant again. Shiroko got up for more; her elegant smile looked more like Satan's mask. Emiko watched closely, not letting up on the spell as sweat stained her shirt.

_Come on_, she thought to her target, _Come to mama, you bitch!_ As if in a hungry trance, Shiroko sailed over to the demon. Emiko smirked at the results.

"Now, Tsuzuki!" the butch demon yelled. The Shinigami summoned Byakko for attack. The white tiger flew through the circle and bit Shiroko right in the neck. The kitsune shrieked aloud in pain as sparks from the ring shot out and landed on anything in their path.

"Shiroko!" Haruka yelled in shook as Byakko ripped into the kitsune's body with his teeth and claws. The stunned creature collapsed to the ground with its silver white now being soaked with red. The old woman ran to her kitsune and held her in her arms. She felt a sharp pain in her chest as if the kitsune's was flowing into her body. Shiroko was still alive, but seriously injured. Blood poured from her wounds, soaking her mistress' clothes as she wept. Then, her sorrow turned into rage as she looked up at the crew.

"You monsters!" Haruka yelled. Then, she heard the clock chime in the background. The old woman cursed herself softly.

"Damn it," she muttered, "It's too late; I failed to kill her!" The old woman stood up with her kitsune.

"I will be back to kill Anna for this! Mark my words!" she snapped. The crew moved to trap Haruka, but she got away while teleporting out. On the up side, Anna was still alive. The crew hurried over to the woman. She still sat in the chair, now free to move again.

"Kimoto-san, are you alright?" Hisoka asked.

"Yeah," she said dryly, "Just happy to move on my own again." Close to midnight, Anna and Tsuzuki sat on the front porch. Anna fidgeted with her hands in the warm early spring morning.

"They killed Papa to keep themselves alive," she murmured, "It's just so… so…"

"Stupid?" Tsuzuki suggested.

"Yes," she said nodding. Anna tightly pressed her lips together. She pressed her hands together in the same manner.

"I know the truth now," Anna said. She turned to Tsuzuki.

"You can take the Hell Stone from me if you want," she said. The Shinigami smiled as he shook his head.

"Nah," he said, "We need you alive to track down your family. We can't let any more innocent people die." Anna looked at him oddly.

"Is that all?" she asked with an eyebrow raised. Tsuzuki shook his head as he lightly took her by the hand.

"I want to get to know you better," he replied. Alarm spread all over Anna's face. His hand clutching hers added onto the effect.

"Why?" she asked. The Shinigami shrugged at her in a goofy way.

"Just cause…" he said.

"Just cause what?" the woman asked.

"Just because I want to," Tsuzuki answered playfully. Anna just couldn't help but to smile at that logic.

"Good enough," she said to him in an upbeat tone. She held his hand as well as both sat in the silent dark.

_May 27th, 2009, 7:00 a.m._

Hisoka got off his cell phone with Konoe. He found Tsuzuki and Anna in the living room.

"The boss called," he announced, "We've got another body."

"Let's go!" his partner said. Hisoka left first. Tsuzuki turned to Anna.

"Ready to do this?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said in a low voice. They both got up off of the couch. Tsuzuki lightly took her hand in his. Anna's heart fluttered in her chest.

"Tsuzuki…" she murmured. The Shinigami shushed her gently.

"It's okay," he whispered. Anna looked at him in a joking way.

"But, they'll talk," she whispered with a smile on her face. Tsuzuki gave her a little shrug.

"Let 'em," the Shinigami replied, smiling back at her. The pair headed out to join their friend on the new part of the Ed-Kimoto case.

Owari


End file.
